SWA - Is there an easy way to see where a flight stops?

[mill4023]

When looking at fares at SW, it seemed to be a pain to figure out the exact itinerary of a flight. For stops where you change planes, it shows which city you stop at, the arrival times, and the departure times. But for routes where there is a stop, but no plane change and no change in flight number, all it tells you is the original departure time, the final arrival time and how many stops there are. But it doesn't give any details about each individual leg of the trip.

I think I figured out my routes, but I had to download the schedule, do a search on the flight number, and find the one that was a non-stop. Then I had to download the schedule for that city and search again to find out when the plane left from that stop.

Is there an easier way to get all the details of the itinerary?

 

[byoung]

N/S means no stops. The other means you will stop and change flights somewhere. and also add time to your trip. Go for the N/S.

 

[gw_lit]

When looking at fares at SW, it seemed to be a pain to figure out the exact itinerary of a flight. For stops where you change planes, it shows which city you stop at, the arrival times, and the departure times. But for routes where there is a stop, but no plane change and no change in flight number, all it tells you is the original departure time, the final arrival time and how many stops there are. But it doesn't give any details about each individual leg of the trip.

I think I figured out my routes, but I had to download the schedule, do a search on the flight number, and find the one that was a non-stop. Then I had to download the schedule for that city and search again to find out when the plane left from that stop.

Is there an easier way to get all the details of the itinerary?

Nope, they way you went about it is the way to find out. At least that's the way I do it, I haven't found an easier way yet.

N/S means no stops. The other means you will stop and change flights somewhere. and also add time to your trip. Go for the N/S.

That wasn't quite what the OP asked. He wanted to know if a flight has a stop, how do you determine where the stop is, and what is the duration of the stop. Of course, you want to go for the N/S all things being equal, but non-stop isn't always an option depending on where you're flying from.

 

[redyellowmom]

Here's how I did it. You need to know the flight number of the flight you are trying to find out about. Go to the main SWA page and click "check flight status". Then enter your departure city in the first section, and *this is important* your flight number but NOT your intended arrival city. Then click "view flight status information". When the new page loads, it will tell you the arrival information for that flight for today, including where that flight number landed after it left your city.

Now, this is not a guarantee, but given the way that SWA does things, it's probably unlikely to be different when you fly.

HTH

 

[Bowen9475]

I believe you can call the 800 number and they can tell you where the flight stops.

 

[antmaril]

Delete

 

[mill4023]

That wasn't quite what the OP asked. He wanted to know if a flight has a stop, how do you determine where the stop is, and what is the duration of the stop. Of course, you want to go for the N/S all things being equal, but non-stop isn't always an option depending on where you're flying from.

Exactly. On the flights with a stop but without a plane change it doesn't tell you where it stops and how long the stop is. I was mainly wondering about how much time was spent just sitting on the plane on the ground. There aren't any non-stops from Portland, OR to MCO on ANY airline. The SW flights are either through Chicago with a plane change and 2.5 hr layover or through Kansas City with no plane change and 25 minutes on the ground.

Here's how I did it. You need to know the flight number of the flight you are trying to find out about. Go to the main SWA page and click "check flight status". Then enter your departure city in the first section, and *this is important* your flight number but NOT your intended arrival city. Then click "view flight status information". When the new page loads, it will tell you the arrival information for that flight for today, including where that flight number landed after it left your city.

Now, this is not a guarantee, but given the way that SWA does things, it's probably unlikely to be different when you fly.

HTH

Thanks. That is much easier than downloading the flight schedules and looking up all the flight numbers. Like you said, they could change, but from what I've seen, SW doesn't seem to change their flight routes much.

 

[redyellowmom]

mill4023, are you coming from Portland, OR?? We are coming from Portland, OR. We are taking that SW flight that is on the ground in Kansas City for about 25 minutes. I was a bit nervous about that, but I've been reading other threads on these boards about SWA, and people who fly them regularly seem to think that they have no problem turning a flight around in 25 minutes. It seems amazing to me that they can do that.

We've never flown SWA airlines before, so I was pretty nervous about the whole thing, but reading the boards here has cleared up much of my nervousness. I just couldn't beat SWA's fares AND schedule. Like you said, I couldn't find a way to get to MCO directly from here, and I really dislike changing planes with two kiddos in tow and guaranteed seats. I wasn't willing to do that with "cattle call" boarding.

Now my biggest flight worry is packing enough food to take on the plane. I can't count on getting any food from the airline, I'm pretty sure we won't be able or want to deplane in KC, and it's about 6 hours flying time, not counting the stop. Softsided picnic cooler, here we come!

 

[Lewisc]

Go to the interactive route map
http://www.southwest.com/travel_center/routemap_dyn.html
click on the non-stop option and you can see where flights from your airport go to. It's usually obvious where the stop is but you can confirm by looking up your flight.

Continuing passengers don't leave the plane. As soon as the last passenger leaves the plane the pre-boards start boarding. Generally under 30 minutes.

 

[mill4023]

mill4023, are you coming from Portland, OR?? We are coming from Portland, OR. We are taking that SW flight that is on the ground in Kansas City for about 25 minutes. I was a bit nervous about that, but I've been reading other threads on these boards about SWA, and people who fly them regularly seem to think that they have no problem turning a flight around in 25 minutes. It seems amazing to me that they can do that.

We've never flown SWA airlines before, so I was pretty nervous about the whole thing, but reading the boards here has cleared up much of my nervousness. I just couldn't beat SWA's fares AND schedule. Like you said, I couldn't find a way to get to MCO directly from here, and I really dislike changing planes with two kiddos in tow and guaranteed seats. I wasn't willing to do that with "cattle call" boarding.

Now my biggest flight worry is packing enough food to take on the plane. I can't count on getting any food from the airline, I'm pretty sure we won't be able or want to deplane in KC, and it's about 6 hours flying time, not counting the stop. Softsided picnic cooler, here we come!

Yep. We actually live in the Medford area, but I'm buying 6 tickets and fares are really high from Medford. So it's looking like it will be worth driving the 5 hrs to Portland to fly SW. We have family in Eugene, so when we've flown out of Portland, we usually stay in Eugene the night before our departure and the night after our return flight. I'm hoping we can get the $99 internet one-way fares on SW out of Portland when they release March/April dates. But even if those aren't available, it should still be cheaper than what's available now.

 

[redyellowmom]

Yep. We actually live in the Medford area, but I'm buying 6 tickets and fares are really high from Medford. So it's looking like it will be worth driving the 5 hrs to Portland to fly SW. We have family in Eugene, so when we've flown out of Portland, we usually stay in Eugene the night before our departure and the night after our return flight. I'm hoping we can get the $99 internet one-way fares on SW out of Portland when they release March/April dates. But even if those aren't available, it should still be cheaper than what's available now.

Yes, not living near a major airport can be a major pain. When we were deciding to make the trip, I didn't realize that the internet one-way fares are only available at certain times, like when they are running a sale. I saw those $99 one way fares, convinced dh to go, and when I went back to book they were no longer available as a choice. We ended up with $120 each way promotional fares, as I was afraid that if I waited for the sale to come around again the seats would be gone.

When I was looking at other airlines, the lowest I got to was about $250 rt, and those were mostly undesirable to-me flights like red-eyes or very early/very late departures. Overall I'm pleased, but I've learned so much about booking flights from these boards that I will probably do it differently next time.

 

[mill4023]

Yes, not living near a major airport can be a major pain. When we were deciding to make the trip, I didn't realize that the internet one-way fares are only available at certain times, like when they are running a sale. I saw those $99 one way fares, convinced dh to go, and when I went back to book they were no longer available as a choice. We ended up with $120 each way promotional fares, as I was afraid that if I waited for the sale to come around again the seats would be gone.

When I was looking at other airlines, the lowest I got to was about $250 rt, and those were mostly undesirable to-me flights like red-eyes or very early/very late departures. Overall I'm pleased, but I've learned so much about booking flights from these boards that I will probably do it differently next time.

With SW, once the cheap fares are gone, you're unlikely to see them again. Right now, the cheapest I can get out of Medford is over $500/ticket. From PDX, the cheapest they have is $300 and that's only if we fly out on a wednesday and return on a wednesday. Fri, Sat, or Sun flights are all over $400 for our date range.

 

[gramjulie3]

Hi Redyellowmom and Mill4023, I'm so glad to to see other fans from so close to home. We live in Newport (on the beach). My family flew from PDX to MCO on SWA in June. I have to admit we were really apprehensive about SWA. We took the flights that did the stop in Kansas City. It went like clockwork. We are already planning to go again using SWA. You are right, you won't get off there. What I did was put different snacks in each persons backpack or carryon and then we all shared. Also we drove to Portland the night before our flight, stayed at a area motel that allowed us to leave our car in their lot for free, and just rode their shuttle to and from the airport. My husband was really happy about not leaving our car at the airport. Have fun on your trips.