Post all SW questions concerns, etc. here...

[focusondisney]

I'm glad to hear it's not all flights, but I do think the limited availability degrades the benefit.

If you use EBCI, you can check in at your leisure and know you'll have good boarding position. Especially for return trips where check in is the last day of vacation, you can be happily on a roller coaster when your 24 hits and get to it when you get to it.

The upgrade benefit is unreliable because it might not be available. You end up having to check in at 24 hours or risk bad position if A1-15 are sold out.

For years I purchased EBCI for every trip. I have the priority CC & have also used the upgrade benefit a few times too. The last few years I‘ve read so many reports of people with EBCI getting B positions, even late Bs. But now that SW has added the free EBCI to anytime fares & as a benefit with their other credit cards, I think many more people will be getting it. Which I think might lead to even higher boarding positions. My DS & DDIL had Bs with EBCI on their last trip, although they only booked about 2 months out. I‘m concerned EBCI won’t be as reliable as it once was for getting a good boarding position. I know SW doesn’t guarantee an A position, but I’ve always gotten an A with it. So for me, getting a B with EBCI would be a downgrade.

Usually I have our vacation plans set before fares are released. I noticed on release day Business Select isn’t that much more than WGA fares in my airport. Especially if I’m gonna pay for EBCI too. So for now my plan is to book BS if I can. Bit if not, I’ll still use EBCI for the convenience. Or book JB so I can pick my seat & be done with it, lol.

 

[Mrs.AMC]

Not sure what was going on with your trip @Mrs.AMC . Did you notice if other gates had the posts & if people were lining up? I also will not be happy if they start doing away with lining up. Not for nothing, but I have been buying BS when fares are first released. Several times I have gotten A1. I will not be going behind 14 other people if I planned & purchased far enough ahead to get that position. Same with any other A position I get. JB has nonstops from our city too. I’d much rather switch to them & pay for the seat I want rather than go back to the SW days when you had to get there early & stake you spot in line. Which tho limited is what this seems to be.

None of them had posts. They were all southwest gates

 

[Mrs.AMC]

Not sure what was going on with your trip @Mrs.AMC . Did you notice if other gates had the posts & if people were lining up? I also will not be happy if they start doing away with lining up. Not for nothing, but I have been buying BS when fares are first released. Several times I have gotten A1. I will not be going behind 14 other people if I planned & purchased far enough ahead to get that position. Same with any other A position I get. JB has nonstops from our city too. I’d much rather switch to them & pay for the seat I want rather than go back to the SW days when you had to get there early & stake you spot in line. Which tho limited is what this seems to be.

None of them had posts. They were all southwest gates

 

[AussieFan8]

If your flight drops in price and you change it to the new fare, do you hold the spot from the date you initially paid for EBCI, or does it drop you on the list to the date that you changed the flight?

 

[Wood Nymph]

But now that SW has added the free EBCI to anytime fares & as a benefit with their other credit cards, I think many more people will be getting it. Which I think might lead to even higher boarding positions.

We usually buy Wanna get away fares and add Early bird. We have been getting boarding groups that were all group A, so far, but towards the end, i.e. A40 to A59. I bought an Anytime flight in October and got boarding group A22. That would support your theory that the more expensive Anytime fare would give a better boarding group.

What I am seeing, though, is an increase in pre-boards. SWA doesn't really have any kind of proof that you are qualified to pre-board, and some people take advantage of that. I don't know what the solution would be, though, to limit the abuse.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

We usually buy Wanna get away fares and add Early bird. We have been getting boarding groups that were all group A, so far, but towards the end, i.e. A40 to A59. I bought an Anytime flight in October and got boarding group A22. That would support your theory that the more expensive Anytime fare would give a better boarding group.

Anytime fare always had higher priority than WGA fares (ETA this is talking about EBCI). Before SWA added the EBCI into Anytimes fares if two people purchased EBCI but one of them had purchased Anytime fare and the other WGA, the Anytime fare was put ahead of WGA fares.

Keep in mind A-list is ahead of everyone, within that A-list preferred should be ahead of just A-list.

I think what people are seeing is just that with Anytime fare having EBCI included in it that puts a bit more people in front of those with just WGA fare with EBCI since instead of someone selecting to choose to purchase EBCI all get it within Anytimes fare.

 

[EACarlson]

I think the biggest development that lowered EBCI boarding numbers is that A list is being achieved much more than previously and everyone on a PNR with an A lister gets that benefit too. If I'm travelling for work and get A list and then take my family, instead of just me getting an A boarding spot, now all four of us would. Including EBCI on Anytime fares adds a few but I don't think it's as much as the A list change.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I think the biggest development that lowered EBCI boarding numbers is that A list is being achieved much more than previously and everyone on a PNR with an A lister gets that benefit too. If I'm travelling for work and get A list and then take my family, instead of just me getting an A boarding spot, now all four of us would. Including EBCI on Anytime fares adds a few but I don't think it's as much as the A list change.

It's still not that easy to get A-list.

However there were people, like my husband, who had A-list that would have expired at the end of 2021 that were given opportunities to extend that and that was already on top of an extension due to the pandemic. For instance my husband's A-list was extended from ending in 2021 through 2022 because he was given an offer and completed it to do 4 one way or 2 RT flights last late fall. However no such offer was given this year and he had to fully earn his A-list and he barely made it despite flying quite a bit for work. And the bump they just gave for reward travel counting I don't think that truly helped many people, it's just a goodwill gesture on behalf of SWA that doesn't net too much benefit for many.

Yes people who are on the same reservation get A-list benefits (other than same day standby and such unless also A-list) but that was already the case in 2020 IIRC.

I want to say it's just a weird place we're at. You have people whose A-list will be running out at the end of this year due to extensions combined with Anytime Fares getting EBCI. I think the number of A-listers effect will level off next year.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

None of them had posts. They were all southwest gates

Yeah I just talked to my DISer friend who used to live here, he's lived in Orlando for a few years and he left for KC from Orlando on Wednesday...normal SWA procedures then.

Are you sure these were actual Southwest gates and not ones that were used temporarily but didn't actually belong to SWA?

 

[BillFromCT]

We usually buy Wanna get away fares and add Early bird. We have been getting boarding groups that were all group A, so far, but towards the end, i.e. A40 to A59. I bought an Anytime flight in October and got boarding group A22. That would support your theory that the more expensive Anytime fare would give a better boarding group.

What I am seeing, though, is an increase in pre-boards. SWA doesn't really have any kind of proof that you are qualified to pre-board, and some people take advantage of that. I don't know what the solution would be, though, to limit the abuse.

We flew out to Vegas on Sunday via BWI. There was not a single pre board, and they announced the flight was full. And I think there was one group for family boarding. It was a rare sight.

 

[Wood Nymph]

We flew out to Vegas on Sunday via BWI. There was not a single pre board, and they announced the flight was full. And I think there was one group for family boarding. It was a rare sight.

We found that to be true for our flight from Chicago to Portland, Maine. There weren't any pre-boards.

 

[sandam1]

A weird thing happened on Sunday when we went to check in for our flight from MCO to Buffalo. My friend and I were both online, attempting to check in. I was able to check in easily while it took her another minute or two because she needed to go to her email, find her confirmation number and enter it in the app. However, I got B52 and she got B32. Wait, what? Yep, it happened. It really didn't matter much in the long run, but it was definitely odd.

 

[nekonekoneko]

A weird thing happened on Sunday when we went to check in for our flight from MCO to Buffalo. My friend and I were both online, attempting to check in. I was able to check in easily while it took her another minute or two because she needed to go to her email, find her confirmation number and enter it in the app. However, I got B52 and she got B32. Wait, what? Yep, it happened. It really didn't matter much in the long run, but it was definitely odd.

More thank likely, after you checked in, the person who had B32 either purchased Upgraded Boarding, or changed/cancelled their ticket. So your friend got what's next, which was the now abandoned boarding place.

 

[mickey916]

Check your December flights! I just lowered my return flight from $189 to $64...same flight. I booked Wanna Get Away so I could just get travel funds but we'll use them!

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Sale is going on from today until the 10th, certain blackout dates of course apply like the other recent sales

 

[focusondisney]

More thank likely, after you checked in, the person who had B32 either purchased Upgraded Boarding, or changed/cancelled their ticket. So your friend got what's next, which was the now abandoned boarding place.

Exactly what I thought, whoever got B32 immediately upgraded their position, so the friend got the vacated B32.

 

[sandam1]

More thank likely, after you checked in, the person who had B32 either purchased Upgraded Boarding, or changed/cancelled their ticket. So your friend got what's next, which was the now abandoned boarding place.

Ah, that makes sense!

 

[Threehearts]

Can I buy an empty seat and if I pay for ECBI for both, can I use that second no passenger seat for the middle seat?

Over the past month, I've been diagnosed with a life-threatening problem and had a piece of my shoulder and a piece of humerus in my arm removed. The grafting is not working. My arm/shoulder is very unstable, but I must get to my elderly mother in the next few weeks and that will be on a 2 hour SW flight to get there.

It won't matter what class I am in for such a short flight but it will matter if the bones in my arm are jostled. I have read conflicting reports about whether the airline will honor this kind of purchase. I am trying desperately to preserve the function in my arm and I thought the spare seat idea might work.

Thank you.

 

[LadybugsMum]

Can I buy an empty seat and if I pay for ECBI for both, can I use that second no passenger seat for the middle seat?

Over the past month, I've been diagnosed with a life-threatening problem and had a piece of my shoulder and a piece of humerus in my arm removed. The grafting is not working. My arm/shoulder is very unstable, but I must get to my elderly mother in the next few weeks and that will be on a 2 hour SW flight to get there.

It won't matter what class I am in for such a short flight but it will matter if the bones in my arm are jostled. I have read conflicting reports about whether the airline will honor this kind of purchase. I am trying desperately to preserve the function in my arm and I thought the spare seat idea might work.

Thank you.

I would assume so since they allow larger passengers to buy 2 seats for comfort.

 

[Threehearts]

I would assume so since they allow larger passengers to buy 2 seats for comfort.

Thank you LadybugsMum.

There are reports from people who tried this. They said that if the airline was overbooked or a passenger needed to be moved, that their spare seat was taken and they were refunded.