I've found that SWA charges as much, on many of their flights to certain destinations as other more "upscale" airlines do even when you factor in the free luggage thing.
I'm fact, I chose Hawaiian on my last trip to the Big Island over Southwest for convenience, service and Hawaiian was $25 cheaper
There’s no customer who *needs* to pay for checked bags, so stop the bullshit and just admit you’re out to gouge customers like every other airline #SWA
They were the best of the discount airlines. They were never competing with the Big 3. Now, they lost the only benefit they had over Spirit, Frontier, Breeze, etc. There is absolutely no reason to fly Southwest unless their total package price is less, which it likely won’t be.
The blunder was directly caused by Elliott Investment Management, an activist investor/vulture capitalist firm that is forcing SW to squeeze the last drops of blood from their customers...
It's always these types of things. 20+ years in finance, MBA etc and its always these short term minded parasites destroying strong American companies. The movie Wall Street was a warning against this and so many people took it as inspiration. I can't believe we are 40 years later and it's worse
which is all good & well when companies & industries are actually making things, but a path to oblivion when the parasite class sucks all the blood out of a company.
The former Citibank trader, Gary Stevenson has turned me into a neo-socialist.
That's because this is vulture capitalism. Just like Bain Capital (Mitt Romney, no matter how hard he tried to distance himself from it) ran Kay Bee toys into the ground. Or this shitbag thief, Lampert. they don't care about the customers or employees.
After dictator donny
succeeds in
tearing
AMERICA
completely
down,
for his pal
Putin
what will
HISASSHOLINESS
have to spend
Bitcoin?
$MELANIAS???
a pair of old Gold shoes?
I don’t think I’ve ever flown SW. maybe, not sure. While price is a factor when I pick a flight it’s not the only factor. I usually don’t check a bag so that perk was never important to me. But that’s just me.
Southwest is rarely the least expensive, but it’s been worth it to me for the overall experience (fewer people cramming their things in the overhead compartments because they can check their bags for free, etc.).
If Southwest is doing this they are just another cut rate airline. I will NOT be flying Southwest (only airline I used if the destination was available) in the future.
People have the right to be angry, but they need to be informed that the vast majority of companies are doing this, and others will follow suit before long.
Now they have nothing to distinguish themselves. Checked bag fees to offset fuel costs were a contrivance to get people to pay more without raising fares. Now e everyone does both. F SW.
What a shame, they were my go to airline. I do not understand the concept of being expected to travel with out clothes or just something you can fit in the overhead.
Considering that private equity recently bought a big stake in the company, this was to be expected. Can anyone find an example of private equity making a customer experience better rather than worse?
PE no longer looks for long term investment. Buy, retire old debt and issue new. Cut so much the entity dies and PE collects fees for years while managing the bkrtcy… Rinse, lather, repeat
From the AP's article on the change, dated 11 March:
'The airline estimated in September that charging bag fees would bring in about $1.5 billion a year but cost the airline $1.8 billion in lost business from customers who chose to fly Southwest because of its generous baggage allowance'.
One of the worst things that ever happened with air travel was the introduction of bags fees. It doubles the time it takes to board/inboard planes. It make passagers angry before they even leave the gate.
They’ve sucked for a while now. They used to be cheap enough to make up for the annoying boarding and crappy planes but that went out the window a while ago.
Many of Canada’s airlines have a fee for checked baggage, depending on tier; it can be included/excluded with level of service you pay for. Works well, you don’t pay for extras that you don’t use. An experienced traveller will need only one personal and one carry on. Southwest is adapting to market.
Sad. There was a time too long ago when the airlines got so greedy they charged everything including the snack peanuts. Something happened, and they backed off quite a bit. So this is no surprise, disappointing but not surprised
It's literally what set them apart from their competitors. Much of their smaller commuter planes feel just as old as the rest but I forgave outdated aesthetics for the free bags
Air travel is not on my list any time soon anyway. I don't trust this REGIME! At the rate of their cuts these planes will be flying with 1 wing and 2 wheels!😳. With all the cuts I get the feeling they want to reduce the population🤷🏽♀️ I'll pass lol
It was my preferred airline of choice, for so many reasons. Whenever booking an engagement, I would almost always choose Southwest so long as any cost difference was negligible.
Though, they more often than not, were the most inexpensive airline as well in those days.
Southwest Airlines was my go-to airline for decades, but the last couple of years, they have routinely rescheduled my carefully selected itineraries & replaced them with godawful schedules. Often, not just once but twice. Their recent announcement re their new policies are the last straw.
Once upon a time, not at all long do, checking two bags was part of the payment for the ticket. This should come back for all airlines. Charging for baggage is price gouging
American capitalism in a nutshell. It's probably so ingrained in every graduate MBA that we won't purge it from our culture for generations. I hate this dimension.
You know nothing and yet you post that. Find a Southwest pilot and ask if it’s possible. Don’t you know enough to not believe everything you read on the Internet?
There’s a cost to bags , they should just incorporate it into their tickets but then can’t compete wit other airlines and why should you pay if you don’t have a bag. So it’s called weight distribution and lift cost more if the plane is heavier. Simple math. Today’s new economy forced them.
If I recall correctly, didn't they initiate charges for luggage because of excess fuel charges? And, when the fuel charges went down... it just became another profit center... yeah, we don't have a corporatocracy!
For me, the free baggage - actually not “free” but included in the cost of the ticket - was the trade-off for not having an assigned seat and waiting in a long line to board. No longer.
Nope, because "capitalism".
As far as flying Southwest... I primarily travel for work, so the checked bag change doesn't mean much to me for that. When it comes to personal travel... I'll be looking at other options as well from now on.
It will mean one thing for you - way more bags on the plane. Without free checked bags all the families will be trying to carry on instead of checking. So, get ready for less overhead space & longer wait times at the gate. Yippee.
I typically preboard, so I'll at least be as comfortable as possible in my seat while waiting for the anti-check idiots.
I wonder if they're doing away with free checked bags to get the gate agents and flight attendants to actually enforce bag size rules...
The airline deserves the backlash. What they did was to take something so beloved - their culture of putting passengers first - and turned it into the culture of greed that is the benchmark of every other airline, where their passengers come last.
I won’t be flying SW anymore. Unassigned seats and 2 free bags were my favorite part of their services. May as well go to one of the “cheap” airlines now.
More damning is that we have lost Democracy! The rest of our revered institutions will now fall like dominos.
I give Democracy 90 days. Unless major opposition is initiated, we and democracy/a civilized society is doomed. We cannot exist with lies/hate/division and constant erratic acts!
Yes. They’ve gotten rid of what made it great for vacay travelers.
Changing fees to make more expensive fares, benefit business travelers. Which won’t attract them, because they don’t have lounges & cabin upgrades that the other biz-preferred airlines have. Lose-lose for them. Idiotic.
Oh, Southwest lost me ages ago.
Planes were dirty, would not let me go further back in the plane where it was not as crowded. Not to mention during "sales" only one seat was at that price. sigh
Maybe 30-40 years ago, the SW employees made it kinda fun for a new passenger on a short north-south business hop, in an “affordable and we can joke around a little” kind of way. A nice change of pace from big corporate airlines. Slowly, as the world changed, so did they. I miss those days.
I pretty much only flew Southwest, but now my loyalty is gone. They are just another airline now. Flying commercial is such an unpleasant experience, from the TSA, the micro seats that cause me intense knee pain, the cost and being treated like cattle.
They’ve been trash for years. Last time I flew with them, my connecting flight was scheduled for 2 different destinations. Mine was the one cancelled, and I asked the gate agent what my options were. She angrily said I “shouldn’t have flown through ATL”. So that was my last flight with SouthWest.
I’ve been a loyal customer for years because of their luggage policy. Many have pointed out that I could save on my flight by shopping around. I refused. SW lost my loyalty. I’ll be shopping and canceling my card.
Southwest Airlines lost me 15 years ago with their terrible service, idiotic A-B-C seating and an overall horrible travel experience. Has it gotten any better? Don't care, I'll still never book with them.
When private equity buys, they often:
1 - Change the business model.
2 - Work towards bankrupting the company when the ROI isn't enough to satisfy them.
3 - Write off the losses as they declare bankruptcy.
4 - Repeat 3 more than once.
5 - Sell it off for parts and profit.
6 - The end.
Comments
All they did was give me more airline options to choose from when I look for flights, because they took away the things that kept me loyal to them.
I'm fact, I chose Hawaiian on my last trip to the Big Island over Southwest for convenience, service and Hawaiian was $25 cheaper
They charge I pay for assigned seats on another carrier.
They are so dumb.
That was the only reason my Mom picked them for all our trips
which is all good & well when companies & industries are actually making things, but a path to oblivion when the parasite class sucks all the blood out of a company.
The former Citibank trader, Gary Stevenson has turned me into a neo-socialist.
https://prospect.org/economy/sears-gutted-ceo/
/I wish I was joking
succeeds in
tearing
AMERICA
completely
down,
for his pal
Putin
what will
HISASSHOLINESS
have to spend
Bitcoin?
$MELANIAS???
a pair of old Gold shoes?
I wish there was a good way to prevent this predatory practice. It's too common and does not serve us.
Floating this trial balloon is either brilliant marketing or a terrible business decision.
That airline has killed people mid flight and acted like it was normal daily business
It’s vulture/vampire capitalism
'The airline estimated in September that charging bag fees would bring in about $1.5 billion a year but cost the airline $1.8 billion in lost business from customers who chose to fly Southwest because of its generous baggage allowance'.
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/southwest-airlines-end-oil-hedge-171700822.html
*looking at the record crashes under trump*
You bet...
Though, they more often than not, were the most inexpensive airline as well in those days.
Wonderful staff & 737s.
https://bsky.app/profile/johnpelwood.bsky.social/post/3lky4k7xjq22t
They've been jumping the shark for years; this is the final jete.
This sounds bad.
shame, they had the funniest and most chill flight attendants
As far as flying Southwest... I primarily travel for work, so the checked bag change doesn't mean much to me for that. When it comes to personal travel... I'll be looking at other options as well from now on.
I wish Southwest would actually enforce the carryon/ personal item bag size.
So much time wasted from people trying to shove big bags into small bins.
The Max-7 still not being certified makes things worse as the -700s have such tiny bins.
I wonder if they're doing away with free checked bags to get the gate agents and flight attendants to actually enforce bag size rules...
I give Democracy 90 days. Unless major opposition is initiated, we and democracy/a civilized society is doomed. We cannot exist with lies/hate/division and constant erratic acts!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ztwd-_NxPT4
Changing fees to make more expensive fares, benefit business travelers. Which won’t attract them, because they don’t have lounges & cabin upgrades that the other biz-preferred airlines have. Lose-lose for them. Idiotic.
Planes were dirty, would not let me go further back in the plane where it was not as crowded. Not to mention during "sales" only one seat was at that price. sigh
long as they don't crash
like everyone else....
1 - Change the business model.
2 - Work towards bankrupting the company when the ROI isn't enough to satisfy them.
3 - Write off the losses as they declare bankruptcy.
4 - Repeat 3 more than once.
5 - Sell it off for parts and profit.
6 - The end.
What’s the endgame?