Southwest Rapid Rewards - Irregular Ops RNO-LAS

I am new to SW, and I foolishly booked the last scheduled flight out this evening. Flt 3330 at 2155h. Now showing 0055 tomorrow morning:td:. Experienced SW flyers was wondering how likely is that it will be canceled? I really need to be in LV tomorrow morning. Thanks for any thoughts!

I am new to SW, and I foolishly booked the last scheduled flight out this evening. Flt 3330 at 2155h. Now showing 0055 tomorrow morning:td:. Experienced SW flyers was wondering how likely is that it will be canceled? I really need to be in LV tomorrow morning. Thanks for any thoughts!

As a recently reformed 7 year UA 1K/turned A-lister, this is one this that worries me with WN: IRROPS.
There are no interline agreements, and no matter how far up the list I am with WN, if I can't get out on them, I'm stuck (unless I buy on someone else).
I wish I had a good word for you other than checking OA. Sorry. :-/

I am new to SW, and I foolishly booked the last scheduled flight out this evening. Flt 3330 at 2155h. Now showing 0055 tomorrow morning:td:. Experienced SW flyers was wondering how likely is that it will be canceled? I really need to be in LV tomorrow morning. Thanks for any thoughts!

The short answer to your original question is "Not Likely".

Southwest generally does most everything they can reasonably do to operate the last trip of the day (night), even if it's majorly delayed like your flight. They need the aircraft and crew in the planned overnight city so as to start the system out the next day "intact".

It appears that your aircraft may be operating as flight #248 SAN-LAS-RNO, turning back out RNO-LAS as #3330. While LAS is Southwest's 2nd-busiest operation, RNO is a relatively small out-station. Having the crew time-out and not having a backup crew available in RNO (at that hour) would/will be a problem. Obviously, there are no absolute guarantees. The good news is their dispatch/crew scheduling IT folks haven't yet met the mentally challenged fools that run the public web site. Please report back if/when you have time and let us know the outcome.

Thanks guys. Makes sense that they would want the equipment in LAS in the morning. Hopefully crew will still be legal or that they will have changed them in LAS for the flight up. Will let you know.

They need the aircraft and crew in the planned overnight city so as to start the system out the next day "intact".

Additionally, with LAS now a crew base, it's also likely that the RNO-LAS flight is the last of the crew's multi-day schedule.

You will more than likely go out, eventually. I went to MSY about a year ago and an afternoon storm rolled through HOU causing all the MSY-HOU flights to be delayed by about 6 to 10 hours after schedule. Despite the massive delay all remaining flights (4?) did eventually operate that evening/early morning.

The flights basically became first come first serve regardless of booking as so many people had abandoned their itinerary and either hit I-10 or had headed back to Bourbon St.

It's a 3 hour delay..but couldn't you drive to LAS in roughly that time?

It's a 3 hour delay..but couldn't you drive to LAS in roughly that time?

Total Travel Estimate: 7 hours 14 minutes / 448.50 miles

The aircraft is currently boarding in LAS and estimated to depart at 11:10 pm, arr RNO at 12:25 am.

It's a 3 hour delay..but couldn't you drive to LAS in roughly that time?

It's only a 2 lane highway between Reno and Vegas, it can take 7-8 hours as mentioned above.

The aircraft is currently boarding in LAS and estimated to depart at 11:10 pm, arr RNO at 12:25 am.

FlightAware reported it pushing back at 12:28am.

http://flightaware.com/live/flight/SWA3330

countless times I've seen the last FLL-TPA or FLL-JAX flight leave at about 1 AM in IRROPS. The weird thing is that much like this scenario, the FLL-TPA did a PHL-TPA-FLL-TPA turn, so it seems pointless to run the flight, but they did despite the delay. As mentioned above, Southwest does everything in their power to run as many flights as they can, whether its at 8pm or 2am. They sometimes run "red-eyes" just to get the planes back in order for the morning (remember, unlike other airlines, they have two "shifts" of crews, so if a plane gets in at 5am and leaves at 6am, a different crew would run it anyway). I give em credit, but I know I wouldn't want to be delayed 5 hours on a FLL-TPA flight! (or RNO-LAS)

...but I know I wouldn't want to be delayed 5 hours on a FLL-TPA flight! (or RNO-LAS)

Obviously, nobody would, but when a weather event whacks a major airport, the aftermath of severely delayed flights often presents the only options of running it late, or not at all. The classic case of the lesser of two evils...

Is it known the OPs flight delay (3330) was weather?

Is it known the OPs flight delay (3330) was weather?

No, it's not known, and my mentioning weather wasn't intended to be to the exclusion of other potential delay-causing items. In basic terms relative to the OP's general situation, a delay is a delay, no matter what the reason, and the bottomline is that it still sometimes can come down to running a flight really delayed, or not at all.

Cheers...

I know there was a ground stop for awhile at LAS last night due to AF1. Could that perhaps have been it?

Those ground stops are usually pretty short term - simply when the plane is nearby and moving on the ground.

This flight was many hours late.

If it was within WN's control (e.g. crew, maintenance), you will get a voucher at the airport. My late evening PHX-SEA flight was delayed nearly 3 hours last fall and I got a $100 voucher which nearly covered the one-way fare. The airport agents were very courteous and brought out snacks and soft drinks for us. Eventually, we got to SEA about 2 hours and 15 minutes late at 2:10am!!! :eek: But I had a $100 voucher to use on my next WN flight.

Actually, this experience made me feel better about WN irreg ops.

vouchers aren't guaranteed during a long delay. they are authorized in extenuating circumstances. by the Southwest airport manager's definition. As I told others that means if you're one of the worst couple delays out of their thousands of flights that day, then maybe.

a 3 hour delay, followed by boarding, and the need to deplane and board a different plane due to a maintenance light or broken lav? possible


as a reference point, last month I saw a 3hr delay in MCO then the aircraft you that pulled up to the gate from maintenance had to wait another hour to have excess fuel (weight) removed by the airport's 3rd party fuel contractor. did not result in a voucher. fairly upset crowd.

snacks I've seen given during long delays late in the evening when there are limited/no vendors available in the airport. only at airports with WN provisioning facilities.

Obviously, nobody would, but when a weather event whacks a major airport, the aftermath of severely delayed flights often presents the only options of running it late, or not at all. The classic case of the lesser of two evils...

yes but in the case where the plane goes eg. TPA-FLL-TPA, wouldn't it be logical to cancel both legs if its 2am? My point being it would be quicker at that point to rent a car and drive.

yes but in the case where the plane goes eg. TPA-FLL-TPA, wouldn't it be logical to cancel both legs if its 2am? My point being it would be quicker at that point to rent a car and drive.

It could appear that way, to you, but then again not everyone desires to rent a car and make the 4+ hour drive between the two points in your example. I sure wouldn't want my kids (18 and 20) making such a late-night drive, especially considering that they be strangers to the area.

If SWA employees post here, can't one of them kindly look up WN 3330? This sort of thing happens on other FT forums.

The OP says 3330 posted a 3+ hour delay well before its scheduled departure time.

It's no military secret, right?

Flight Aware shows that it went out at 0028 and landed at 0124.

If SWA employees post here, can't one of them kindly look up WN 3330? This sort of thing happens on other FT forums.

The OP says 3330 posted a 3+ hour delay well before its scheduled departure time.

It's no military secret, right?

No, it's not, but if I could have looked up the specifics of the OP's 3330, I would have, but I couldn't, so I didn't, other than make the general comment that LAS was a crew base and it was thus unlikely they'd keep a crew from completing the last leg of a multi-day trip, and thus contribute to the answer of the question posed.

Not being an official spokesperson, I'm understandably operating under certain constraints, and I endeavor to to attempt to explain operationally-related items in general terms. I'm sorry that my response hasn't been informative enough in this case.

I've been on that last LAS-RNO flight many, many Friday evenings. It frequently is late. They will "hold it up" for late incoming flights to help accommodate transfer passengers from other places... I was that transfer passenger once.