Airtran sent me an email...

[grandy w]

This is one of the reasons we don't fly airtran anymore,we have flown quite a few times with them,the price was right.The last 2 trips to Orlando were non-stops,which they changed to stops at their hub in Atlanta.We went from arriving at Orlando 10:30 am to arriving almost 4:00 pm!We love Jet blue!

 

[MAGGIED]

I received an email yesterday from Airtran changing our flight from 6am to 5:50am... only ten minutes... I called them and asked if they could move us on to a later flight instead... they did... I only paid $79 for the orignial flight (per person) - it was a connecting flight... the new flight was non-stop.. and was over $400.... they didn't charge me anything... not the difference in the airfare.. no service fees.... I was doing the happy dance.... so now instead of having to arrive at the airport at 4am we depart at 10amm....

 

[DisneyFan32WI]

I received an email yesterday from Airtran changing our flight from 6am to 5:50am... only ten minutes... I called them and asked if they could move us on to a later flight instead... they did... I only paid $79 for the orignial flight (per person) - it was a connecting flight... the new flight was non-stop.. and was over $400.... they didn't charge me anything... not the difference in the airfare.. no service fees.... I was doing the happy dance.... so now instead of having to arrive at the airport at 4am we depart at 10amm....

WOW-you really lucked out!!!

 

[richmo]

Oh my! That is crazy. I leave for Florida in 18 days and I am afraid they will try to change our time. We have never flown on SouthWest before. We don't have much flexibility due to our jobs. Do they usually try to give you at least a 2 week notice?

Southwest never changes their times. Thats part of the reason they're able to keep their costs down. They don't have to go thru all this notify, rebook and refund processes because of schedule changes.

The reason they are able to do this is also the reason some don't like Southwest: you can't book more than about 6 months in advance, most times less. I think I read that Southwest doesn't release their schedules until after they have their gate positions and time slots locked up, while other airlines allow you to book up to 11 or so months in advance in anticipation of what slots they think they'll get. So, with Southwest you have the disadvantage of having to wait to book, but the advantage of knowing that when you do, those times are pretty much locked in.