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No More Pre-Boarding For Families on Southwest Airlines
I've got some more Southwest Airlines news for you: Today CEO Gary Kelly announced his company's decision to continue their open-seating boarding policy, but he failed to mention they will also ditch pre-boarding for families."Beginning Oct. 2, people traveling with small children will no longer be allowed to pre-board Southwest Airlines flights," reports World Hum. "It's all in the name of fairness, the airline says."
There's been no mention of this on the official Southwest Airlines blog, but one commenter responds negatively in a seperate thread: "I just heard on cnbc that families and adults with children will not be allowed to board 1st. If this is true, I have officially flown with southwest for the last time."
I don't have kids, so it doesn't really affect me... but I can't imagine why people would complain about families with children being able to board before the rest of the group. Maybe these are the same people who pick fights with 5-year-old kids? I'm not sure.
So, folks with kids: is this a deal-breaker?
Update: As many of our readers have pointed out, Southwest didn't completely get rid of pre-boarding -- but they did move it. With the new system, families with at least one child under 4-years-old who do not have an "A" boarding pass will be allowed to board in between the "A" and "B" groups. Which basically means that all families with small children will automatically have an "A" boarding pass. So technically they did get rid of pre-boarding, but they're still accommodating families by allowing them to board before of 66% of the passengers on a full flight (when it really matters).
Our sister blog, ParentDish, has their own take on the situation. Click here to read what they have to say.
Filed under: Airlines
Reader Comments (Page 4 of 4)
Shaun Dakin Oct 9th 2007 11:30PM
Hi,
I'm outraged. I just traveled with my three year old son and will never do so again on SW. After 20 years of being a SW "lover", no more. How short sighted.
I'm starting a protest site.
http://www.stopsouthwestpreboard.com/
Regards,
Shaun Dakin
Alice Oct 12th 2007 2:39AM
I think SWA is making a big mistake by not allowing small children to pre-board. From people who have posted here, it appears that there are lots of people who HATE children, and also HATE the fact that little children get to board 1st.
I have 1 year old twins and I often travel alone with them. (And to James... I enjoy my kids, we enjoy traveling, and I hope my kids never have to sit next to you.) Getting rid of preboarding will make it horrible. I always get my "A" boarding pass ahead of time and show up early, so it is not like I am cutting in line. To get 2 big carseats and 2 barely walking toddlers onto the plane and then fold and gate check the double stroller will prove to be quite a challenge.
This is what is involve in me and my twins getting on the plane:
I leave them both alone in the stroller at the gate
go install one seat,
come back to get the other seat and go install it,
come back for one twin,
and then come back for the other,
and then come back to fold up and gate check the stroller.
How do I do all this while a line of people are trying to board the
plane? I count that is 4-5 times I will need to go back and forth between our seats and the ramp onto the plane.
Also, Southwest doesn't have assigned seats. What if, by the time I get back on the plane, I can't sit next to my kids? Would you want to be the passengers in the rows with the babies whose mother is sitting 10 rows back? Will you take the liability for being sued for my child choking on the peanut you fed him because you didn't know babies could choke on nuts? What if my kid ends up alone next to James and he poisons my child with vodka because he doesn't stop crying?
I am not asking for "more rights" to board first. Pre-boarding for people who need more time is in the interest for all passengers.
smominator Oct 16th 2007 2:44PM
I was surprised to find out they changed the policy. Families getting all the goods seats, Get over yourselves. As a parent of six, I can smell you kid-haters from a mile away. My kids range from 4 to 13 year old stage and we love to mess with you. So from now on when we do fly SW, because we procreators love to fly to Disneyland, I will just tell my children to fan out and grab the first available (good seat) in the front! Then we can be extra annoying as we have yell things to each other across the plane.
You can't check in online unless you have access to a computer and printer, which is not always available on your flight home. I have shown up two hours early for a flight and still received a "C" boarding pass.
In my observation, it takes so freakin long to get on the plane, because everyone is carrying on everything but the kitchen sink. So maybe we should start making people with carry-on luggage get on last, since they take longer to get into their seats.
FYI- Most parents head to the back of the plane with their children.
1) it's closer to the bathroom
2) there's more room to spread out
shame on you southwest for buying into some crybaby's rant!