SW Boarding Position Question

[izzy25]

A friend of mine just flew Southwest on Thursday and she did not purchase EBCI. When she checked in at the 24 hour mark, she got boarding position A16 and her husband was A52. Is there a reason their boarding numbers were so far apart? I had always thought that if you were booked under the same confirmation number that your boarding positions would be together?

 

[supersnoop]

Does she have A-List status? That would explain A16.

 

[goofy4tink]

If she had been A-List, she would have had A1-15. A16 is the first non-A list slot. In any case...happens a lot, for some reason. If I were her, I would board and save a seat for her dh. And yes, that's fine to do....they both paid for EBCI, and it's all in one row.

 

[Vijoge]

OP says they did not pay for EBCI

 

[goofy4tink]

OP says they did not pay for EBCI

Oops, my bad. This is what happens when you watch that stupid giraffe at the same time as you post on the DIS!!!! I can only imagine that the person that was supposed to get EBCI for that A16 slot, dropped their flight reservation...and your friend was at the right place at the right moment! A52 would seem to be a decent slot for a non-EBCI passenger. I still have no issue with her saving her DH a seat...just not an issue.

 

[mom2rtk]

I think I saw someone say if they didn't use all the A-list spots, they release them for general public at 24 hours out. There must have been 1 left.

 

[paults]

that was not an alist slot

 

[JessM]

A16 is an A-list spot. A1-15 are business select spots. An A-lister may have cancelled and your friend got their boarding spot. As an a-lister I'm typically between A18-30.

 

[Best Aunt]

Oops, my bad. This is what happens when you watch that stupid giraffe at the same time as you post on the DIS!!!!

12:40 pm, still no baby giraffe!

 

[Fangorn]

A1 - A15 are reserved for Business Select. There are no actual spots reserved for A-List members. A-List members are assigned their positions 36 hours out from the flight time. They will be assigned positions starting with A16 and going until all the A-Listers are assigned (order appears to be based on the order when the flight was booked). After all the A-List members are assigned, the EBCI folks are assigned their numbers (assignment order here seems to be based on when EBCI was purchased, not when the flight was booked).

In the case here, it was likely, as mentioned, that the A-Lister assigned A16 cancelled between 36 and 24 hours. The OP was the first non-AList/non-EBCI reservation in the queue, and was assigned the A16 slot. Husband, even though he was on the same reservation, got the next available position - A52.

It happens.

Steve