Southwest Airlines will start charging for checked bags next month, despite airport signs and marketing all over the place promising that ‘bags fly free’. It’s all a part of a series of customer-unfriendly moves like basic economy, expiring travel credits, and seat assignment fees that will leave the Dallas-based carry undifferentiated from other airlines, except that they’ll lack premium cabins, lounges, seatback entertainment screens or broad international partnerships.
This is going to create several problems, aside from eliminating a major reason that customers picked them over other airlines.
- Customers will try to bring many more bags into the cabin instead of checking them, to save money.
- Southwest doesn’t have as many oversized bins on planes as other airlines, so there’s less room for these carry-ons.
- More carry-ons slow down the boarding process. Boarding planes will take longer at precisely the time that Southwest is trying to reduce the length of time it takes to board planes in order to operate more efficiently (fly each plane more to generate more revenue at lower cost).
- They’ll have to begin gate checking bags much more frequently, too. That takes time at the last minute right as they’re trying to get a flight to depart.
- And their gates in some airports aren’t even set up to support this. For instance, their Houston Hobby hub still has “an old cable system” for gate checking bags that they are “going to have to replace” according to Executive Vice President of Operations Justin Jones. The current system just won’t handle the volume they’re going to see.
And there are two choices Southwest is making in the transition, meant to be customer-friendly as passengers get used to a new unfriendly Southwest, that are going to make things even worse.
- Operations head Jones says they are going to be “extremely hesitant to do heavily policing on bag size” like at “some other airlines.” And he acknowledges that means even more gate checking of bags because those oversized bags take up more room in the bins, meaning room for fewer total bags.
- They are reportedly going to maintain current generous carry-on allowances despite knowing that space for carry-ons will be scarce.
Southwest has had the most generous carry-on policy in the industry, allowing bags up to 24 x 16 x 10 inches. Industry standard is 22 x 14 x 9 inches. They’ve been able to do this because not as many passengers bring all of their belongings on board, since the airline has offered to check bags free.
There’s been discussion of Southwest restricting carry-on bags to more industry standard dimensions. That would have been expected, in order to ration scarce bin space in the cabin. However they confirm to me that they aren’t going to make the change to reduce allowable carry-on sizes after all, saying that maintaining current policy “will help keep our boarding process seamless as we aim to keep it as hassle free as possible for our Customers and our Employees.”
Still better than frontier
“an old cable system” for gate checking bags
Never heard that term, can you explain?
Thanks
I would not fly frontier even if the ticket was completely free.
Rock hard seat.
Shit stained lavatory.
And don’t get me started on the people
@ Gary — Sounds like the same guys setting tarriffs are making these stupid decisions.
“Extremely hesitant to do heavily policing on bag size” and they’re “going to maintain current generous carry-on allowances”
Let’s start a blog-pool on how long until they change their mind….
The Feds will undoubtedly be roaming WN gate areas. Not all onboard rules are at an airline’s discretion.
My prediction: They will start policing gate checked bags within 30 to 60 days of the new rules. They will not have a choice.
With impending recession and the resulting travel slowdown, SW could not have picked a worse time to start screwing their loyal customers.
As an infrequent flyer of SWA, I like the current seat comfort and relatively generous leg room. I also detest the boarding process and lack of assigned seating.
So, for me, the upcoming changes are a mixed bag, especially as I rarely check a bag with any airline on a domestic route.
Perhaps it’s the routes that I tend to fly throughout the year, but, to date, their fares are so comparatively outrageous that I sometimes even forget to even check them when researching flights. Even if I were to check a bag, their prices would not be competitive.
I am hopeful this statement will not be true: “Southwest doesn’t have as many oversized bins on planes as other airlines, so there’s less room for these carry-ons.”
I was on a flight recently and the bins were designed where you could put the carry on in the bin on it’s edge. Not sure what percent of there fleet have them. And… will other planes be retro-fitted to have them? Will new planes added to the fleet have them? (I don’t know the inner workings of SWA so I have no knowledge of the answers to those questions.)
@ Tim — What Feds? They’ve all been fired.
@ Ron: You nailed why travelers don’t like the present WN setup AND why these same travelers won’t be moved by the new WN changes. Do think more flyers will get their cc to obviate checked bag charges but otw see no net revenue positives.
Can’t wait to see what this change does to their on-time performance. Customers are gonna try to carry-on as many bags as they can get away with. Get ready for gate delays!
This is our MBA management culture. Do not want to flush out details because that might take time, people and money. Instead shove the change onto hourly workers and make them deal with fall out.
I see it all the time in software deployment. Boneheads at the C level that have no clue of the complexity of implementing new software and think it just can be done over Teams calls.
This is going to be absolute chaos, if they don’t enforce the bag size people are going to take it on the plane and then be forced to check the bag leading to delays along with anger and confusion. I would hate to be a Southwest employee and have to deal with this mess.
Bring the C Suite down to help at the gate and on the plane during boarding. By the third bank of departures on day one it will be changed.
@ Gene. I know it’s supposed to be humor, but not all the FAA Feds have been fired . . . just the ADF beacon and VORTAC Navaid repairmen (my generation).
Sounds like the C Suite needs an overhaul… Top to bottom.
Only a small number of Feds have been fired thus far. The probies were re-hired. A Reduction-In-Force is underway but the people being reduced haven’t been notified yet. Hiring focus will be placed on NECESSARY duties of the FAA, not unreasonable duties. Eliminating waste is always important in private industry — and it should also be a top priority of govt industry.
Nothing is worse than taxing citizens and wasting their tax dollars on unneeded positions. The govt workforce has been getting beyond-bloated.
LOL.. @gary… you do realize that every single US Airline has to submit their carry-on policy to the FAA who then enforces THEIR policy…. So, while there will be growing pains… there will be enforcement. just not to the gestapo level at AA.
I hate all the changes. It was running like a well tuned car and now, KABOOM.
I will never understand why airlines board. Front to back and not back to front . This is what causes the most delays . Passenger stuck in the aisles waiting for others to be seated and store baggage in bins . After first class is seated . Load the rest of the craft back to front .
@Samuel They board front to back because the people paying more (F, extra leg room, and preferred seats pay more and want the perk of getting an overhead bin.
@Gregory “running like a well tuned car and now, KABOOM” The FAA system cant hire/train ATC to meet demand which lead to delays in the Northeast and cutback of flights. They inadvertently uploaded the wrong code which crashed the system. A controller allowed a Blackhawk to be in the landing path of a flight at DCA. One one thinks the FAA implements mondern technology well.
Another sign that the decision makers at Southwest have been pressured by Elliot Management Company. Sorry, but the company went into the grave with Herb. No matter what they tell you and that things change for the better. I’ve had many friends that have said Southwest is done in 10 years. I give it sooner than that, sadly. Here’s an idea…how about asking the front line employees what they think? Oh yeah, they said they did on assigned seating and the carryon bag policy. Yes, they did on the assigned seating, but never about the charging for 2nd carryon bag. RIP Southwest. Try listening to your own employees opinions for once, oh wait.., only Herb did that.
I was a 17 yr Ramp Agent for Southwest. Southwest never goes to its Frontline employees for input and will never follow up with its employees and Customer base. Southwest Leadership looks at both as a Nuisance and not an asset.
I’m just give business to other airline. The bags fly free is a deal breaker. How can they be so out of touch?
Back to front only works if you have reserved bins. Otherwise the people in the back drop their bags at the front and then everyone has to go past their row to find bin space.
@Gene… your a troll. Wit bringing politics into EVERY comment you make. Not happy with SWA’s new policy fly another airline.
Already to many people were violating sw carryon policy of 1 carry on and 1 small personal items that goes under the seat. I would guess 75 percent did not adhere to that rule. Now more people will try carry on either larger bags or two big bags which there will not be room for all so time will have to be wasted to move those bags to the storage. Sw management is really being stupid
They had a great system going
I do not believe their quoted numbers saying they wanted reserved seating. If that many people really did they would have flown other airlines
It’s too bad too lose Southwest. They did so many things right.
Unfortunately, they have (had) a fragile computer system behind it all. When a weather crisis exposed this shortcoming, the company was “hedgefunded” to death.
RIP SWA.
May 28 is just around the corner.
Why hasn’t SWA said anything about the the bag fees??
Why the secrecy? Ohhh they don’t know either!
This partnership with Elliot brings to mind another current tragic partnership. Hmm
If it ain’t broke, leave it alone! Omgosh why mess with a good thing??? The employees did not want the changes. It was a boldface LIE when he said they were onboard with it. Idk. Guess we’ll just have to see how it plays out. It’s truly so sad
As a long time (30+ yrs) customer, Southwest has now lost me. I travel in a wheelchair and appreciate being able to board first and sit in the front where it’s easier to get on and off the plane due to my disability. I don’t like new system and baggage fees so consequently I will be traveling on another airline from now on. There is now no distinction between Southwest and everybody else. Sayonara!