Southwest and Pooh Size travellers

[seashoreCM]

If you bring an FAA approved booster or car seat as well as a boarding pass for your infant then you are guaranteed seating next to him. You should be boarded with families after the A group if you are not in the A group.

This does not guarantee that a flight attendant does not single you out for buying a second seat on the spot, but the chances of this happening are much much less if nobody else complains.

You must not intentionally dilly dally so as to board at the last minute.

While the child seat must be at the window and saving seats is technically not allowed, you may keep the aisle seat for yourself if you are awaiting another family member who is boarding in a later group or zone.

 

[Hannathy]

I would like to see dividers that go the length of the seat not just the armrests. You should not be able to just cram the armrest down and then hang over around it and say you don't need 2 seats.

I am very very glad to see SW asking more and hopefully enforcing the need for 2 seats.

 

[sesame_123]

Ok first of all I would like to say that I am not overly concerned about my family flying. I understand that we can board after A. I don't actually think that my children will be stuck next to strangers, but that is the policy that they cannot guarantee it,

i've looked into the customer of size policy because my brother needs two seats and it just bugs me that they can guarantee two seats to have one empty but they can't guarantee family members next to each other. I understood this policy when booking and am still fine with my purchase. I just don't understand why my brother couldn't have shared his seat with my daughter or as also discussed on southwest why 2 customers of size cant use one extra seat for them both. It just doesn't make sense to me that they can guarantee 2 and 2 but not 3 across.

Either it is open seating or its not, if they can guarantee 2 for a customer of size, then why can't they guarantee 2 for a parent and a child no matter the age. I understand no one wants to sit next to a person of size but then what stranger wants to sit next to my 4, 5, 6, 7,...year old. If the customer of size gets to board early than why not parent and their children. I will wait for those of you that will say then don't use southwest and pay to have assigned seating or pay for early check in. (which I have already) I guess I'm just trying to figure out a policy that just doesn't make sense to me. And I will see how this trip goes before saying I will not fly with southwest again but I just don't get it.

 

[BirdsOfPreyDave]

I am extremely obese and use SWA exclusively because I think their policy is the most fair, clearly stated, and easy to use. I always purchase a second ticket for myself because there is no question that a person could not sit in the seat next to me comfortably.

I used to get into a near panic when I had a single ticket, worried that someone would sit next to me. I knew it would be awkward and uncomfortable for both of us. The peace of mind in knowing I don't have to worry about that any more would be worth the price of the second seat. The fact that they'll return that ticket cost if the plane isn't oversold is a wonderful bonus.

Pre-boarding is also another aspect that takes away a lot of anxiety, because I don't have to worry about finding two seats together for myself, and I am usually able to find a whole row so I can sit with my friend.

The only inconvenience I've experienced with SWA's second seat has been that it takes me longer to check in, because there has always been a problem getting the computer to recognize that it's a second seat and not two people. I've recently found the reason for that, and shouldn't have that problem in the future. I book my seats online to get the cheaper web site fares. When I use my frequent flyer number on the first seat, it fills in my full name, to include the middle name. For the second seat, I use my first name, "XS" as the middle name, and my last name -- per the web site instructions. A gate agent finally explained to me on my most recent trip that the names need to be identical for the computer to make the match. I need to either remove the middle name from the first seat, or add it (along with the " XS") on the extra seat.

Policies for other airlines aren't nearly as friendly to the large traveler.

For the California trip we took this past Christmas, I checked several airlines. Without exception, they either didn't have an official policy regarding an extra seat, or said to book a single ticket and take a chance that there would an extra seat on the plane. They explained that they'd re-book me to a later flight if there wasn't one available. Well, I knew there weren't going to be many open seats during Christmas week, so I was reluctant to do that, knowing I'd get bumped -- possibly several times. In order to be ensured two seats, I'd have to buy two tickets. If I wanted a refund for the second ticket if it wasn't needed (as is SWA's policy), the only way to do it with other airlines is to buy a fully-refundable ticket. The fare for these unrestricted tickets is nearly four times the cost of the economy tickets I was pricing.

That led me to understand just how great of a deal the SWA policy is. Despite the fact that we couldn't get a direct flight from Philadelphia to Los Angeles, it was still my best bet. I was also very pleasantly surprised to find out when I called that all of our flights qualified for the refund. That was a $600 Christmas bonus I hadn't really planned on.

We arrived at the airport very early for our return flight, so we were sitting at our gate while another flight was getting ready to load. A gate agent did ask to speak with me, and pulled me aside to tell me I might not be able to get on the flight because of my size. He did it in a very polite manner, which I didn’t find offensive at all, because I knew about the policy. Fortunately I was able to tell him I wasn’t going to Las Vegas, and did have an extra seat for myself on my flight.

 

[kaytieeldr]

i've looked into the customer of size policy because my brother needs two seats and it just bugs me that they can guarantee two seats to have one empty but they can't guarantee family members next to each other. I understood this policy when booking and am still fine with my purchase. I just don't understand why my brother couldn't have shared his seat with my daughter or as also discussed on southwest why 2 customers of size cant use one extra seat for them both. It just doesn't make sense to me that they can guarantee 2 and 2 but not 3 across.

When you have two separate people, each can sit in a separate seat. Those seats do not need to be next to each other, or even near each other (technically they don't even need to be on the same plane).
When you have one person who needs two seats in accordance with the airline's policy, that person cannot physically sit in two seats that are not next to each other. Plain and simple. So, yes, they guarantee that passenger two adjacent seats.

Either it is open seating or its not, if they can guarantee 2 for a customer of size, then why can't they guarantee 2 for a parent and a child no matter the age. I understand no one wants to sit next to a person of size but then what stranger wants to sit next to my 4, 5, 6, 7,...year old. If the customer of size gets to board early than why not parent and their children.

Yes, it is open seating - but some passengers, such as those physically requiring two seats together in accordance with the airline's policy and who have paid for such special seating, and others needing special assistance, do get to board ahead of most other passengers.

Your 4/5/6/7... year old doesn't NEED to be seated next to you. You may want him or her there, but it's not a necessity. I've sat with more than one unaccompanied minor. You're on the same entirely enclosed plane as your child; you'll all manage just fine for a few hours. If your child needs you and the stranger in the next seat won't or can't help, that person is capable and (likely) willing to get your attention.

The customer of size doesn't have a choice. Your brother can't seat 3/4 of himself in 12A, and the rest of himself in 23 F - can he? But if you absolutely had to - which you won't, having both purchased EBCI and being eligible for Family Boarding - you could seat your four year old in 12A and your infant in 23F.

 

[disneychic2]

Love what Pearlieq said. Very to the point! It's a sensitive situation for sure. I had the experience of having a pro football player sit next to me for a flight from Dallas to Cleveland and the entire trip, I was scrunched as far as I could go toward my DH who sat at the window. He hung over big time, plus spread his legs so his foot was over in the seat in front of me. That was one miserable trip! I couldn't even get my tray table up from between the seats b/c his body was firmly on top of it. My biggest question was, if you're wearing a Super Bowl ring, why aren't you in first class?? (this was AA btw) I'm glad there are policies in place and that, for the personal comfort of all concerned airlines are enforcing them. My heart goes out to people who face this problem from either side!

 

[disneychic2]

Either it is open seating or its not, if they can guarantee 2 for a customer of size, then why can't they guarantee 2 for a parent and a child no matter the age.

Why can't they guarantee hubby and I can sit together? We hate to be separated!

If the customer of size gets to board early than why not parent and their children. I will wait for those of you that will say then don't use southwest and pay to have assigned seating or pay for early check in. (which I have already)

consider it said!

 

[disgrajak]

"Your 4/5/6/7... year old doesn't NEED to be seated next to you. You may want him or her there, but it's not a necessity. I've sat with more than one unaccompanied minor. You're on the same entirely enclosed plane as your child; you'll all manage just fine for a few hours. If your child needs you and the stranger in the next seat won't or can't help, that person is capable and (likely) willing to get your attention.

The customer of size doesn't have a choice."



Okay seriously??? You think that having a 4 year old sit next to it's mother isn't as important as an overweight person having an extra seat? Things have happened to kids on airplanes. Wasn't there just a 16 year old girl seated next to a man masturbating recently? There is no way I would want my 4 year old to be seated next to a stranger for "a few hours". Not to mention, kids get scared being away from a parent or even flying. I would think the experience would be downright terrifying for some. Let people know that Southwest may not be for them-----but please don't act like it's no big deal for a small child to be seated away from it's parent on a plane.

 

[gokenin]

"Your 4/5/6/7... year old doesn't NEED to be seated next to you. You may want him or her there, but it's not a necessity. I've sat with more than one unaccompanied minor. You're on the same entirely enclosed plane as your child; you'll all manage just fine for a few hours. If your child needs you and the stranger in the next seat won't or can't help, that person is capable and (likely) willing to get your attention.

The customer of size doesn't have a choice."



Okay seriously??? You think that having a 4 year old sit next to it's mother isn't as important as an overweight person having an extra seat? Things have happened to kids on airplanes. Wan't there just a 16 year old girl seated next to a man masturbating recently? There is no way I would want my 4 year old to be seated next to a stranger for "a few hours". Not to mention, kids get scared being away from a parent or even flying. I would think the experience would be downright terrifying for some. Let people know that Southwest may not be for them-----but please don't act like it's no big deal for a small child to be seated away from it's parent on a plane.

OK first off I usually stay away from these types of threads because they bother me, you sit here and complain about plus size people sitting next to you and demand that they buy two tickets now you complain that they are allowed to sit before you in order to make sure they have the two seats you demand they have? DO you want your cake and eat it too ? you can have one or the other.

I love that you refer to the child as an it by the way.

 

[Lewisc]

A customer of size pays for an extra seat. It would defeat the purpose of purchasing a second seat if the seats aren't next to each other.

A passenger with a service animal is guaranteed a bulkhead seat. Passengers with wheelchairs will be able to sit near the front of a SW plane (pre-boarding).

A lap baby will always be able to share the seat of the adult who purchased a tickets.

There are a few exceptions to the open seating policy.

Parents who want to sit next to a child, or a couple who wants to sit together isn't such an exception.

PP is right. Posters complain when a customer of size infringes on their space but then complain when SW sets a policy that solves the problem.

 

[disgrajak]

"OK first off I usually stay away from these types of threads because they bother me, you sit here and complain about plus size people sitting next to you and demand that they buy two tickets now you complain that they are allowed to sit before you in order to make sure they have the two seats you demand they have? DO you want your cake and eat it too ? you can have one or the other.

I love that you refer to the child as an it by the way."




Well, I used the word "it" because I didn't want to use a male or female pronoun.

And, respectfully, the rest of your post was nonsensical. I did not discuss overweight passengers being forced to buy two seats. I have no opinion on the airlines policy with regard to that. And, as my best friend is obese, I certainly have no objection to sitting next to her. I just think that parents shouldn't be seperated from small children. It shouldn't be an either/or situation. Hope this helps you understand my point of view a little clearer.

 

[keishashadow]

I apologize, I wasn't looking for debate or clarification on this issue, I was merely sharing my experience and thoughts about my situation. There are a lot of people who use these boards in travel planning and many of them are larger size and have asked in the past about Southwest's policy. This was the first time I've encountered use of the policy so I was merely trying to point out that it is in place, is being used, and even if no one has ever asked before, they may now. For a lot of people being asked to buy that second seat at departure is an expense that they can't afford. A little awareness and planning up front could save them a lot of grief.

I am all for air safety and in that respect understand why any airline has such a policy. What I wonder, was air travel then unsafe prior to implementing this policy? Planes have been in operation for many, many years and to my knowledge have not had a safety situation because of a passenger's size arise. If anyone knows of this, I'd love to hear about it. As for comfort, I'm all for having a comfortable flight and especially on an airline that doesn't pre-assign seats, I do understand that I many always have my children next to me to help accomodate my size. However, if comfort is a consideration to all passengers, then why isn't comfort taken into account in every way. For example, my husband, who is very "normal" size was seated across the aisle from us. The two seats next to him were taken up by also average adult size people. They were not jammed into the 3 seats but no one had extra room either. On top of that, as soon as the plane took off, the passenger in front of him reclined all the way back the entire flight. So if an airline is going to stand by comfort as a reason to implement a rule, they need to correct any and all situations that could create discomfort.

Alas, the person who says this is not about money is clearly living in a world different than mine. Bottom line, the airline wants to make money. Yes, they will refund your ticket if the flight is not full. However, in stating that I would bet they are banking on most flights being full or overbooked and passengers due a refund not actually following through with getting it in the end. Somewhere there are some SWA execs who have a careful formula in place based on complaints, safety issues, flight bookings, etc., and they have identified two things -- more and more of the American public falls into the obese category, and they can get people to pay for an extra seat by enforcing their policy. Being a cheap airline, they are still going to draw the greatest number of passengers so they ultimately have little to lose by charging for a second seat and monetarily anyway, something to gain.

Again, not trying to stir the pot, just sharing my experience and thoughts.

Yes, the situation can be very unsafe IMO.

im no skinny minnie but fit fully into my seat. On last AirTran flight we paid to pre-assign our seats and selected a window & middle seat, leaving the aisle empty.

we noticed a group of several very large adults (found out they were a family) using medical preboard. They all picked aisle seats, assume they didn't want to crowd each other.

We were last group to board & found one of the biggest was in our aisle. His armrest was up & he was easily into half of my seat. It was a full flight & it took some time to get FA over to literally jam down the armrest at my insistence. Still he increasingly encroached over the top of the armrest & moved his leg into my floor area!. Didn't take long after the flight commenced for me to be forced to move over to the raised bump area between DH & my seats.

My seatbelt had to be adjusted very loose to accommodate my new position, so yes...I felt unsafe and complained but was told flight was already enroute & nothing they could do for me other than direct me to their ground person upon arrival.

I did register my concerns & received: courtesy 1st class upgrades for next trip, two $50 vouchers and their apologies, but certainly would've rather had a comfy flight. However, you are correct in that it is all about the money. AT compensated me in lieu of a passenger buying two seats. I'm pretty sure all those around me were also going to contact AT to complain, causing ripple effect that impacts their bottom line.

 

[seashoreCM]

We were last group to board & found one of the biggest was in our aisle. His armrest was up & he was easily into half of my seat. It was a full flight & it took some time to get FA over to literally jam down the armrest at my insistence. Still he increasingly encroached over the top of the armrest & moved his leg into my floor area!. Didn't take long after the flight commenced for me to be forced to move over to the raised bump area between DH & my seats. .

I did not read the entire thread so this may be redundant.

The time to complain is before departure when the FA can still ask for volunteers to get off. Do not kibitz that they ask for volunteers until after not getting satisfaction (includes any vacant seat elsewhere in the plane) from the captain and complaint resolution officer standing next to each other.

Let's say four large family members take four aisle seats one in front of the next respectively. The airline should be prepared to ask for four volunteers out of a full flight, unless it can get (obey the FA applies here) the four larger persons to sit aisle-window in two rows in which case only up to two volunteers would be needed.

Southwest developed their policy after they got enough complaints and lawsuits that the ripple effect finally impacted their bottom line.

 

[keishashadow]

I did not read the entire thread so this may be redundant.

The time to complain is before departure when the FA can still ask for volunteers to get off. Do not kibitz that they ask for volunteers until after not getting satisfaction (includes any vacant seat elsewhere in the plane) from the captain and complaint resolution officer standing next to each other.

Let's say four large family members take four aisle seats one in front of the next respectively. The airline should be prepared to ask for four volunteers out of a full flight, unless it can get (obey the FA applies here) the four larger persons to sit aisle-window in two rows in which case only up to two volunteers would be needed.

Southwest developed their policy after they got enough complaints and lawsuits that the ripple effect finally impacted their bottom line.

it was the last flight out or i'd have gotten off the plane

im a softie & didn't want to make the guy feel bad. my reward was he just took advantage as the flight progressed...never again would i keep my yap shut

 

[Kathy C]

Either it is open seating or its not, if they can guarantee 2 for a customer of size, then why can't they guarantee 2 for a parent and a child no matter the age.

Why can't they guarantee hubby and I can sit together? We hate to be separated!

If the customer of size gets to board early than why not parent and their children. I will wait for those of you that will say then don't use southwest and pay to have assigned seating or pay for early check in. (which I have already)

consider it said!

Ditto! SW offers options that have been mentioned before. If you are that concerned pay for Early Bird check-in or make sure you're on the computer at the 24 hr mark to get your "A" boarding passes or fly the other airlines and pay all the baggage fees! There are plenty of options out there.

 

[gokenin]

"OK first off I usually stay away from these types of threads because they bother me, you sit here and complain about plus size people sitting next to you and demand that they buy two tickets now you complain that they are allowed to sit before you in order to make sure they have the two seats you demand they have? DO you want your cake and eat it too ? you can have one or the other.

I love that you refer to the child as an it by the way."




Well, I used the word "it" because I didn't want to use a male or female pronoun.

And, respectfully, the rest of your post was nonsensical. I did not discuss overweight passengers being forced to buy two seats. I have no opinion on the airlines policy with regard to that. And, as my best friend is obese, I certainly have no objection to sitting next to her. I just think that parents shouldn't be seperated from small children. It shouldn't be an either/or situation. Hope this helps you understand my point of view a little clearer.

The first paragraph was not directed towards you in particular so yes if you were thinking it was meant for you it would appear nonsensical. That paragraph was directed to the others that had posted in the thread as a general comment. The line about the word it however I felt should have been worded as the child's parent instead of it's parent ( would have kept the gender neutral aspect as well)

 

[ccgirl]

Question for those that purchase the second seat. How do you stop people from sitting next to you? Most all SW flights I have been on are full. Is there a reserved sign they give you? Not trying to be rude, just very curious.

To those asking about a safety issue, I think it can be a safety issue if said person is in an aisle seat and it decreases the width of the aisle. Also, I paid for my seat and I want my entire site. Call me rude but why should I be forced to share my seat? I had to do this on my AirTran flight. Reading the above post, I really wish I said something. I just sucked it up.

To those that want to be "guaranteed" to sit next to their children, fly with an airline that assigns seats. However, even then it can't be guaranteed as there can be a change of planes etc.

And to everyone...have a great flight!

 

[disgrajak]

The first paragraph was not directed towards you in particular so yes if you were thinking it was meant for you it would appear nonsensical. That paragraph was directed to the others that had posted in the thread as a general comment. The line about the word it however I felt should have been worded as the child's parent instead of it's parent ( would have kept the gender neutral aspect as well)

You quoted my (and only my) post in your original post so you can see how a person would be confused. The only reason why I posted was to simply state that it's just as important for small children to be with a parent, as it is for an overweight person to have two seats---just my opinion. One person had to buy an extra seat because they have a child, and one had to buy an extra seat because they are overweight---c'est la vie.

 

[maxiesmom]

As much as you may think that, most airlines do not. And you have to make the decision on which flight to fly based on which airline policies you can deal with.

It is physically possible for a child to sit away from their parent, while it is not physically possible for an overweight person to sit away from themselves. They are 2 very different things, and are treated as such.

 

[disgrajak]

As much as you may think that, most airlines do not. And you have to make the decision on which flight to fly based on which airline policies you can deal with.

It is physically possible for a child to sit away from their parent, while it is not physically possible for an overweight person to sit away from themselves. They are 2 very different things, and are treated as such.

Yep, I get it--I just don't agree with it. As a former prosecutor who dealt with pedophiles, I am a little more "cautious" than some. I realize that on an airplane, the likelihood of someone being "caught" doing something is high, but I also know that pedophiles have very low impulse control and proximity to a small child could push them over the edge--especially if that child is non-verbal and the person in the next seat is asleep. By that time of course the damage is done, so whether or not they are caught wouldn't mean much to me as a parent. So yes, I disagree with the way a lot of the airlines think on this topic. Absolutely.