How good is Southwest with tight connecting flights?

[JenB1104]

I am looking at a flight to book that has 40 minutes in between landing and connecting to next fight. Should this be okay? The connection is in Atlanta.

 

[DebbieB]

I am looking at a flight to book that has 40 minutes in between landing and connecting to next fight. Should this be okay? The connection is in Atlanta.

One thing to keep in mind is that SW does not have assigned seats. Boarding is 30 minutes before, so you may get on at the end of the boarding process and not have many seat choices. If you don't care about seat location, you should be OK but it will be tight.

 

[dashofsunshine]

I think a lot of it depends on the airport as well, and not just the airline. Atlanta is pretty big. You'll need to de-plane, and if you aren't in the same terminal for your next flight, you'll have to take the people mover.

 

[stinkpickle]

That's pretty tight even for a small airport, not to mention Atlanta. If you have to change planes, i would pick a different flight.

 

[rwdavis2]

If the plane is late getting to Atlanta... I never book a connector of less than an hour and prefer 2 hours if I have to change planes. There's really no way to predict it. You could look up the on-time history of your incoming flight. Not sure how, so google it.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

Southwest is in Concourse C at ATL, so,you won't have to change terminals. If your originating flight lands on time, 40 minutes is plenty of time to make your connection.

 

[boufa]

Southwest is in Concourse C at ATL, so,you won't have to change terminals. If your originating flight lands on time, 40 minutes is plenty of time to make your connection.

That is a gigantic IF. Where is your flight coming from? If its winter, be concerned with delays more than normal.

A quick SW story. I was supposed to fly out of Akron, OH to Dallas, TX. I picked Akron because it was about 20% cheaper than flying out of Cleveland. Its however, about 90 minutes away. My wife (who wasn't going) took the day off and took me to the airport. I got there to check in we found out that thunderstorms around Tampa, FL (my connecting city) was putting me an hour behind, so I was going to miss my connection to Dallas. Problem was, that was the last SW flight out of Akron for the day. They worked with me a ton, and when I told them I would be willing to fly out of Cleveland (kinda on our way home) she booked me for a flight out of cleveland. We drove to the airport, tried to check in. The SW agent said there was no way I would make the connections that the Akron Agent had set me up on. She changed me again. This time we would end up with an extra stop, but we would get there. While in the air to chicago this time, they rebooked me again... cutting down one of my layovers from over 3 hours to 1 hour. The SW agents worked their tails off (at least 4 of them... agents, not tails!) to get me to Dallas. Didn't cost me a penny more. They found flights and connections, and tried and tried again. She at first found a flight for me connecting through Denver... a long, long way out of the way, she said "I'm going to hold those seats for you, and see if I can do better" Which she did.

The moral of the story. If you get to Atlanta and miss your flight, they will try hard to get you on another SW flight into Orlando. The main reason I chose Delta over SW for my next flight to Orlando is that Delta has flights that go to Orlando, from Atlanta every hour. So if we don't get out on time, I have plenty of options later in the day to get the rest of the way there.

 

[mrsstats]

I fly SWA from Islip and we always have to change planes. Normally the change is under 1 hour and we have no problems making it. Last flight I had from Islip was delayed over 1 hour leaving. We land in Baltimore 10 minutes after our flight was suppose to take off. They tell us get off the plane and go to your gate since a lot of flights were delayed. Looking at Southwest Flight tracker showed me my connecting flight was on time and not delayed. But we got off the plane and went running to our gate.

When we got to the gate they hadn't even started boarding. Once on the plane they said they waited for the connection since it was the last flight out to Phoenix and they don't like to leave passengers stranded on a Saturday night. Made us very happy.

 

[maxiesmom]

No way would I attempt that connecting thru Atlanta. There have been times when we circled Atlanta for 20 minutes or more before being allowed to land. And then you have have a bit of a drive before getting to the terminal.

 

[Jeni3612]

I've had bad luck in Atlanta. Each time I've been there we've had a problem with connections. Only has happened 3 times, but that's because I choose not to fly through Atlanta anymore. As others before me have said, Atlanta is a large airport and 40 minutes seems pretty tight.

 

[georgina]

As mrsstats mentioned, we have had very good results with SW holding connections for us when our first flight arrives late. Have not had good luck with Delta, they know you are on the ground and heading for the gate and don't care.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

As mrsstats mentioned, we have had very good results with SW holding connections for us when our first flight arrives late. Have not had good luck with Delta, they know you are on the ground and heading for the gate and don't care.

Don't count on this; it's quite unusual to hold a departing flight for connecting passengers.

 

[hsmamato2]

the last time I flew they were holding a flight for some connecting passengers to make it across the airport. So they are quite aware of schedules- but personally I always try for at least an 1-1 1/2 hrs in between...it's still a crunch even then!

 

[dashofsunshine]

Definitely watch out for weather, as well - we fly in/out of Atlanta frequently because we're from Chattanooga. This wasn't our first time being delayed back into Atlanta, but in May we were flying Orlando to Atlanta and they delayed our plane 3 and a half hours due to weather. It was southwest and we were even already on the plane, lol. I distinctly remember the pilot saying, "Atlanta is always overly cautious about weather - they shut it down at the slightest indication sometimes." It sucked! So definitely be aware of the complications that can occur.

 

[kamik86]

I have done SW connections in BWI and Midway that were 50 minutes long without a problem. Some more info:

1) I have A list which means I board early and get a seat at the very front of the plane for my first flight. A few of these had I been at the back of the plane I wouldn't have made it to my connection before boarding starts
2) I have been alone or with only my husband every time I have done this. Which means one or two able bodied adults that can easily move quickly with what luggage we had.
3) I fly SW with my backpack and a SMALL wheeled carryon, something I can easily pick up and run up a flight of stairs (which saves time when the escalator is crowded for example)
4) SW will hold flights for connections it knows are late. So if your flight in is only a bit late your ok you just have to go immediately from one gate to the other. I have had this happen before, yes it meant I was one of the last 5 people on the second plane though so got stuck in a middle seat.
5) Note above I said directly from gate to gate. If your flight is going to be at all late (check the flight tracker on the way) Use your phone to check what your next gate is as soon as you land (unless you are getting the wifi then you can do it in the air) and ask the FA if they don't announce it where your plane is pulling into. Use the bathroom on the first plane if you need to don't plan to stop at the connecting airport.
6) If your first flight is very late due to delays and other issues they will work with you to figure out how to get you where you need to go. I had this once where a day of storms all along the east coast made me miss my connection in baltimore. I was going to Albany, however a flight going to Hartford was late getting in so was still there. They got me on that plane. The earlier in the day you have your connection the more options you are likely to have.

 

[bookgirl]

I've had some very tight connections and SW has always got me to my flight.

One time they didn't and it was during a freak snow storm that hit the mid America airports hard. I originated in one and connected in another. Everyone was basically late from multiple airports and having to rebook. I arrived to find that they had already rebooked me so I got one of the last seats on the last flight from Houston to Orlando. It was a big bummer but I was grateful to at least have a seat, without having to spend the night or rebook alternate routes.