SW seat saving failure

[imabeimabe]

Seat Savers crack me up. DH will take a seat in THAT row just because he can be a little onery.

Thank your DH for me the next time this happens! The more people that will not allow this rude behavior the better.

 

[goofy4tink]

I fly SW...I like SW. BUT......if I'm flying with carryon only, I want to be in the front of the plane. I get off quickly and get to my destination faster.
When I fly JB? If it's with carryon bags only, I pay for the addtl leg room up front. That way I'm sure I'll get space in the overhead bin, I get to board early, and I'm off that plane quickly.
It amazes me to see how long it takes some people to get their stuff together and get off the plane.....and it's usually when I'm in the back of the plane!! Drives me nutty.
You want to save seats on SW? Then head behind the exit rows!! No one is going to really care if you save a couple of seats back there. But nooooooo, no one wants to do that. They want to save seats right up front. And those exit rows?? I remember the time an older couple preboarded with SW due to 'medical issues'. Well, they were first on the plane. I was about A30. When I got on the plane, the flight attendant was trying to explain to this couple that they were't allowed to sit in the exit row seats. The man said it wouldn't be an issue if there was to be a problem. The FA explained that if you had a medical need that made it important to preboard, then that same medical need would prevent the passenger from helping in the case of an emergency. "Oh no, mam. It's not that bad. I could help out with anything!!" was his reply.
The FA told them that the plane wasn't going to move from the gate until they had vacated those seats. Man, that was one unhappy couple!!

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

This is one reason I only fly First Class, except if on a mesquito (commuter jet).

Having first class seats doesn't mean your seat assignment won't be changed or that you are immune from being bumped back to economy. It can happen due to equipment swaps, need for an Air Marshal seat, etc. It has happened to me.

 

[StitchesGr8Fan]

Well this family had to be one of the last off. I walked past them and I was at mid plane. They were still trying to get their stuff together to get off.

wait, you have to give us more than that. Where did they move to? Was there more drama?

 

[DebbieB]

Well this family had to be one of the last off. I walked past them and I was at mid plane. They were still trying to get their stuff together to get off.

I was talking in general why people like to sit in the front vs the back.

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

wait, you have to give us more than that. Where did they move to? Was there more drama?

Sorry I don't have more. This plane was probably only half full so I assume once they admitted defeat they just found seats. I was in the exit row and none of them ever went behind me.

 

[PatMcDuck]

I just got back from an AirTran/SW flight. Where they assign seats at checkin to SW passengers. Pretty chaotic! Some people had the exact same seats assigned somehow. People were switching all around.

I cannot WAIT for the AirTran flights to be all SW. By December 2014 it has to be done. Seat savers should all go to the mid-back of the plane.

 

[stitchlovestink]

I just got back from an AirTran/SW flight. Where they assign seats at checkin to SW passengers. Pretty chaotic! Some people had the exact same seats assigned somehow. People were switching all around.

I cannot WAIT for the AirTran flights to be all SW. By December 2014 it has to be done. Seat savers should all go to the mid-back of the plane.

So you mean two passengers had the same exact seat assigned to them?? and this had happened to several passengers on your flight?? Wow!! I bet that was a mess!

I am on an AirTran flight that I booked thru SW next Wed. Should be interesting!

 

[disneyeveryyear]

We flew SW yesterday MCO to STL. I had booked my DD14's ticket after that of my DH and myself, but she was A29 and we were A52 and A53, so she went ahead.

We were told the flight was at 80%. When that happens, we head to the back. DD and I shared a row of 3, and and DH had a row of 3 to himself.

It was a bit odd when one woman came to me and said she had seat 22C(where I was). I informed her SWA had open seating. She ended up across the aisle (I think she had started her afternoon in the bar, and continued on the flight).

When the flight is non-stop, we tend to go to the back of the plane for more room.

 

[BLLB]

Interesting. We fly at least once a year, family of 4, nearly exclusively on SW. Always pay for EBCI, but move to the back of the plane even if we are one of the first groups on. When our DSs were smaller I liked being close to the restrooms and not having to bug tons of people. (If you have children you know of the bathroom fascination!)

Even now, I really don't care where the seats are on the plane as long as we can sit together. DH is pretty tall, so he likes a seat with extra room (front or exit row). The rest of us just fill in.

 

[DVC-Don]

So you mean two passengers had the same exact seat assigned to them?? and this had happened to several passengers on your flight?? Wow!! I bet that was a mess!
..................

This happened to my wife once on US Air. We were already seated when a woman told my wife she was in her seat. We compared boarding passes and yes, they both had the same seat assigned. Flight attendant came and checked the assignments and said that as my wife was seated first it was her seat. The FA found another seat for the other woman.

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

I had this happen on a flight from Paris. The man in my seat made a loud stink about how much money he spent on the airline, the cost of his ticket etc.

FA takes our boarding passes while he continued his rant. Comes back, smiles at me and hands me my new seat assignment. YES. I am in Business Class now.

I had just stood there and not said a word while the man ranted. And if his ticket cost as much as he claimed he deserved the upgraded seat. (Mine was dirt cheap.).


Sometimes a smile and keeping your mouth shut work well.

 

[stitchlovestink]

This happened to my wife once on US Air. We were already seated when a woman told my wife she was in her seat. We compared boarding passes and yes, they both had the same seat assigned. Flight attendant came and checked the assignments and said that as my wife was seated first it was her seat. The FA found another seat for the other woman.

Wow, the only bummer part is what if the person already sitting there is a solo traveler and you and your traveling companion (say your child) originally had seats next to one another and the solo traveler decides to be a 'jerk' and not move...that would stink!!

 

[seashoreCM]

Wow, the only bummer part is what if the person already sitting there is a solo traveler and you and your traveling companion (say your child) originally had seats next to one another and the solo traveler decides to be a 'jerk' and not move...that would stink!!

The flight attendant did not "have" to let the person who got there first stay in that seat but could rather handle it on a case by case basis. Anyone and everyone would have to follow the FA's directions.

 

[stitchlovestink]

The flight attendant did not "have" to let the person who got there first stay in that seat but could rather handle it on a case by case basis. Anyone and everyone would have to follow the FA's directions.

Oh VERY true as far as following the FA's directions...but it sounds like she (or he) was going with the first come, first served approach!

 

[CarolMN]

Oh VERY true as far as following the FA's directions...but it sounds like she (or he) was going with the first come, first served approach!

Over the years, I've been part of a "double assignment" situation 3 or 4 times. It happens. In every case, the person who got there first kept the seat and the other person was seated elsewhere by the FA. I think that is just the easiest and quickest way for an FA to resolve the problem. FAs are usually focused on getting everyone settled as quickly as possible so the plane can pull away on time.

 

[TheRustyScupper]

Having first class seats doesn't mean your seat assignment won't be changed or that you are immune from being bumped back to economy. It can happen due to equipment swaps, need for an Air Marshal seat, etc. It has happened to me.

1) It CAN happen.
2) But, so rarely, it isn't worth a mention.
3) I have NEVER been bumped from First Class in over 40-years of flying. *
4) Domestic or International.


* I flew so much during the late 60's and early 70's that I was a charter member of the United
Million Mile Club, and got free membership to the United Red Carpet Room.