southwest airlines

Tag Archives for southwest airlines.

Plane Full Of Heroes Flies INTO New York To Help COVID-19 Patients At Great Personal Risk

by Gary Leff on March 29, 2020

Mar 29 2020

The saying ‘not all heroes wear capes’ has become trite and is frequently used ironically. But how else are you supposed to describe a Southwest Airlines plane full of doctors and nurses flying into the hardest hit region for the novel coronavirus?

Each of these women and men are taking on real personal risk to help the people of New York. There’s not enough personal protective gear. Over 50 doctors have died of COVID-19 in Italy so far. And yet they’re all smiling, even knowing what’s in store.

Southwest Airlines New Elite Benefit: Priority Boarding For Companions

by Gary Leff on March 12, 2020

Mar 12 2020

Effective March 12 Southwest will let companions on the same reservation as an elite member board with the elite. Companions on the same booking will be assigned boarding numbers at the same time as the elite.

Father Can’t Sue Southwest For Allowing 14 Year Old To Fly Without Permission

by Gary Leff on February 6, 2020

Feb 06 2020

The conniving 14 year old gets short shrift in all of the legal maneuvering. He was being watched by his grandfather and “asked his grandfather to go to Starbucks to get him a Frappuccino.” While the grandfather was gone the boy went to the airport. He was apparently in league with him mom who bought him a ticket to New Orleans. The father, alerted to the plan, called the police and drove to the airport before the flight took off. Southwest let the boy travel.

Get Started on a Southwest Airlines Companion Pass In The New Year

by Gary Leff on January 11, 2020

Jan 11 2020

A companion pass is arguably the best deal in all of travel, it allows you to bring a companion along on your Southwest Airlines travels for just the cost of taxes – whether you buy your own ticket with cash or with points.

Now is the best time to prepare to earn one – because if you earn it at the start of 2020 it’ll last nearly two full years.

In Leaked Employee Address Southwest Airlines CEO Promises To Never Adopt Basic Economy Fares

by Gary Leff on January 8, 2020

Jan 08 2020

Southwest though has a long history of profits and margins that have eluded much of the industry, and they haven’t gone down the same fees and restrictions rabbit hole. They are the largest domestic airline in the country. They do not have change fees or checked bag fees (for up to 2 bags per passenger). They don’t have seat fees, without assigned seats, but they do charge to be at the front of the boarding queue which means earlier dibs at seat selection.

Will Southwest Airlines Fly To Europe?

by Gary Leff on December 20, 2019

Dec 20 2019

It took nearly a decade for Southwest Airlines to inaugurate Hawaii service from the time they publicly advertised for someone to manage certification of their planes for long flights over water. When Southwest does something new, it seems to take awhile.

However with Hawaii firmly under their belt, could Europe be next?

It’s A Mistake To Finish The Southwest Elite Status Challenge Too Quickly

by Gary Leff on December 5, 2019

Dec 05 2019

The Southwest Airlines elite status challenge, which gives you 3 months of status and an expedited path to keep it for a year, has several quirks. One is that the status lasts literally a year, not the full next year. Another is that once the year is up you can sign up for another challenge.

I discovered a third quirk and that’s that you may want to time just when you complete your challenge. Here’s why.

Why Southwest’s Open Seating Policy is a Windfall for New Parents

by Gary Leff on November 30, 2019

Nov 30 2019

Not only does Southwest offer ‘family boarding’ when you’re traveling with a child under 4 years old — boarding with elites who don’t have A group boarding passes — but if you are traveling with a lap infant and the flight isn’t 100% full you can almost always get an extra seat for your baby without having to buy them one.

How Southwest Airlines Bullies Websites That Try To Help Passengers

by Gary Leff on November 27, 2019

Nov 27 2019

Southwest doesn’t want people automatically checking in 24 hours out, because it might cut into Early Bird check-in revenue. They don’t want people automatically checking price changes, because consumers might save money. They want self-service to be hard. And it’s both fine and reasonable to want those things. It’s neither fine nor reasonable for the government to subsidize those things by threatening innovators who want to use publicly available information.