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Good bye 50-year tradition
by 8DonCo Thu Jul 25, 2024 2:49 pm
Southwest Airlines plans to start assigning seats, breaking with a 50-year tradition
DALLAS (AP) — Goodbye, cattle call.
Southwest Airlines said Thursday that it plans to drop the open-boarding system it has used for more than 50 years and will start assigning passengers to seats, just like all the other big airlines.
The airline said it has been studying seating options, running tests and surveying customers. Southwest discovered that preferences have changed over the years and the vast majority of travelers now want to know where they are sitting before they get to the airport.
Southwest’s unusual boarding process started as a fast way to load passengers and limit the time that planes and crews spend sitting idly on the ground, not making money. It helped the airline operate more efficiently and even squeeze a few more flights into the daily schedule.
It was one reason that Southwest alone among U.S. airlines remained profitable every year until the coronavirus pandemic.
Here’s how it works: Instead of being assigned a seat when they buy a ticket, Southwest customers check in exactly 24 hours before departure to secure their spots in boarding lines. In the beginning, the first 30 to check in were put in the coveted “A” boarding group, guaranteeing them a window or aisle seat. Dawdlers landed in “B,” which was still OK, or “C,” which would often result in a middle seat.
The system became less democratic over time as Southwest let people pay extra to guarantee a spot near the front of the line. Despite that, many Southwest loyalists still love open seating. The airline thinks they will adapt.
“I know there are going to be customers who say, ‘I want to stay with open seating.’ It’s a minority,” Southwest CEO Robert Jordan told CNBC, “but we had the same thing when we switched from plastic boarding passes. We had the same thing when we took peanuts out of the cabin. I’m convinced we can win them over.”
DALLAS (AP) — Goodbye, cattle call.
Southwest Airlines said Thursday that it plans to drop the open-boarding system it has used for more than 50 years and will start assigning passengers to seats, just like all the other big airlines.
The airline said it has been studying seating options, running tests and surveying customers. Southwest discovered that preferences have changed over the years and the vast majority of travelers now want to know where they are sitting before they get to the airport.
Southwest’s unusual boarding process started as a fast way to load passengers and limit the time that planes and crews spend sitting idly on the ground, not making money. It helped the airline operate more efficiently and even squeeze a few more flights into the daily schedule.
It was one reason that Southwest alone among U.S. airlines remained profitable every year until the coronavirus pandemic.
Here’s how it works: Instead of being assigned a seat when they buy a ticket, Southwest customers check in exactly 24 hours before departure to secure their spots in boarding lines. In the beginning, the first 30 to check in were put in the coveted “A” boarding group, guaranteeing them a window or aisle seat. Dawdlers landed in “B,” which was still OK, or “C,” which would often result in a middle seat.
The system became less democratic over time as Southwest let people pay extra to guarantee a spot near the front of the line. Despite that, many Southwest loyalists still love open seating. The airline thinks they will adapt.
“I know there are going to be customers who say, ‘I want to stay with open seating.’ It’s a minority,” Southwest CEO Robert Jordan told CNBC, “but we had the same thing when we switched from plastic boarding passes. We had the same thing when we took peanuts out of the cabin. I’m convinced we can win them over.”
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8DonCo
Re: Good bye 50-year tradition
by tech Thu Jul 25, 2024 2:52 pm
anh 8: có thường bay với SW không?
-TECH-
-TECH-
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Love This Backhand & Backhand Slice
tech
Re: Good bye 50-year tradition
by 8DonCo Thu Jul 25, 2024 2:53 pm
tech wrote:anh 8: có thường bay với SW không?
-TECH-
Không, đã nói là South West thì cho dân South West
_________________
8DonCo
Re: Good bye 50-year tradition
by tech Thu Jul 25, 2024 2:54 pm
anh 8: 
))).
)))._________________
Love This Backhand & Backhand Slice
tech
Re: Good bye 50-year tradition
by ga10 Fri Jul 26, 2024 1:08 am
Thằng SW mà cho assigned seats thì mai mốt sẽ charges extra $$ cho ai thích ngồi in front hay aisles/window seats. Còn ai cheapo thì đành phải ngồi ở giửa thôi!
ga10
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