Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan - My most civilized domestic boarding in ages ......

..... was last weekend on WN.

Perhaps it is time for a compare and contrast with AS. I flew WN for the first time in a few years (round trip), and only the second time in perhaps a decade. This is on a route that AS does not serve. Nevertheless, but for a need/desire for AS miles, on a competitive QX route, I'd probably choose WN. If I was a non-status person (for AS mainline flights), it is a closer call.

(1) Boarding. Even though there aren't assigned seats, the current WN lineup system works very well. Sure, it looks messy, but it is quite organized. No one pushes, no one shoves, and the gate agent turns people out of order away. WN +

(2) Seat selection and carry-on. You have the choice for $10 to not worry about T-24 check in for an earlier boarding slot. This way, you pretty much guarantee yourself a window or aisle, and carry on space. AS with status +, without, WN +

(3) Service/cabin. On just-under 1 hour flights, there was pretty much the same amount of service on an AS SEA/SFO, i.e., one beverage service. The lack of carts means that the lavs are never obstructed, and the one cabin plane means the F cabin lav is never an issue. Want a drink? WN $5. WN=AS, more or less. WN>QX

I'm not comparing the MP, the upgrade opportunities and F cabin, lounge access, etc. Those are things that clearly favor AS.

But what most impressed me was the civilized boarding process. Much more civilized than being in AS F having to shove through people crowding the lane. LAN has a slightly similar lineup to WN in many airports, and it, too, works well (using row #s and status/class for the lines).

I have never flown Southwest before. I have gotten close but never pulled the trigger.

I have spent some time watching the WN boarding experience while waiting for my AS flight. I agree that the perceived chaotic boarding notions are generally unfounded. Things do seem to go smoothly. I like the airlines (like Delta) that board by zone. I will take zones over the current set up on AS any day.

..... was last weekend on WN.

Perhaps it is time for a compare and contrast with AS. I flew WN for the first time in a few years (round trip), and only the second time in perhaps a decade. This is on a route that AS does not serve. Nevertheless, but for a need/desire for AS miles, on a competitive QX route, I'd probably choose WN. If I was a non-status person (for AS mainline flights), it is a closer call.

(1) Boarding. Even though there aren't assigned seats, the current WN lineup system works very well. Sure, it looks messy, but it is quite organized. No one pushes, no one shoves, and the gate agent turns people out of order away. WN +

(2) Seat selection and carry-on. You have the choice for $10 to not worry about T-24 check in for an earlier boarding slot. This way, you pretty much guarantee yourself a window or aisle, and carry on space. AS with status +, without, WN +

(3) Service/cabin. On just-under 1 hour flights, there was pretty much the same amount of service on an AS SEA/SFO, i.e., one beverage service. The lack of carts means that the lavs are never obstructed, and the one cabin plane means the F cabin lav is never an issue. Want a drink? WN $5. WN=AS, more or less. WN>QX

I'm not comparing the MP, the upgrade opportunities and F cabin, lounge access, etc. Those are things that clearly favor AS.

But what most impressed me was the civilized boarding process. Much more civilized than being in AS F having to shove through people crowding the lane. LAN has a slightly similar lineup to WN in many airports, and it, too, works well (using row #s and status/class for the lines).

I've never flown WN. Every time I was in PHX I'd be flying either AS or HP, and I'd see the WN kettle standing in line to check in. The lines would be a mile long, so I swore I'd never fly WN, ever.

I've never flown WN. Every time I was in PHX I'd be flying either AS or HP, and I'd see the WN kettle standing in line to check in. The lines would be a mile long, so I swore I'd never fly WN, ever.

Can't say I have any experience with those lines. I'd imagine PHX check-in would be a zoo. Other than bag drop, I'm not quite sure why so many people need an agent.

Back when I lived in Socal I flew WN almost exclusively to places like OAK, SMF, LAS, PHX, and even HOU and MDW periodically. One time when AA and UA wanted $1,000+ to fly LAX-BOS, I flew WN LAX-BNA-PVD for $199. I even used them periodically for PDX/SEA even though it involved making a stop. They just seemed so damned efficient and reliable in an era where most other airlines seemed like basket cases. These days I use them more infrequently on routes like SFO-LAS, MDW-DTW, DAL-HOU, and my all-time favorite, BUR-OAK.

Contrary to popular belief, WN is not and airline exclusively for kettles. Many business travelers like them for their high frequency, reliability, and overall generally positive and enthusiastic employees. They've come a long way since the days of plastic boarding passes and cattle calls.

I've never flown WN. Every time I was in PHX I'd be flying either AS or HP, and I'd see the WN kettle standing in line to check in. The lines would be a mile long, so I swore I'd never fly WN, ever.

I have distinct memories of from the 90's of flying out of PHX on WN and feeling sorry for the hordes of HP customers going nowhere due to aircraft going mech.

I don't mind standing in a line that has some order to it. What most people don't like is the mushroom-cloud-chaos (MCC) that erupts during the starting of the boarding process.

If you take control and train the participants, they will eventually get it.

I do fly SWA a lot and your single experience was very lucky. Spend any time on their forum and you will see many that beg to differ! Their old style seats were comfortable. The new style eliminates leg room. At 5'10 I have the seat in front hitting my knees, no room to store under the seat in front and try for any space and in general, even one of their today told me the seats suck:(

(3) Service/cabin. On just-under 1 hour flights, there was pretty much the same amount of service on an AS SEA/SFO, i.e., one beverage service. The lack of carts means that the lavs are never obstructed, and the one cabin plane means the F cabin lav is never an issue. Want a drink? WN $5. WN=AS, more or less. WN>QX


I find it amazing that Skywest/DL won't do service on LAS-LAX, but WN does a full service on LAS-ONT (a good 15 minutes shorter than LAS-LAX).

The only downside to WN is there are two lavs on the plane whereas AS has three. Generally not a problem on hops under 2 hours, but on some of the longer flights the line in the back can get quite long.

I've never flown WN. Every time I was in PHX I'd be flying either AS or HP, and I'd see the WN kettle standing in line to check in. The lines would be a mile long, so I swore I'd never fly WN, ever.

You clearly haven't looked at a WN gate recently. Just yesterday at SEA, I had to push through a good 100 people that were crowding around the gate waiting for my AS flight to board.

I do fly SWA a lot and your single experience was very lucky. Spend any time on their forum and you will see many that beg to differ!

It's generally the same group of people (like it is here) that complain. I've flown the "evolve" interior a number of times and while it's not as roomy as it used to be, it's not as bad as people say--I'm 6'2 and I don't find it too miserable. No worse than DL or AS in the back.

I do fly SWA a lot and your single experience was very lucky. Spend any time on their forum and you will see many that beg to differ! Their old style seats were comfortable. The new style eliminates leg room. At 5'10 I have the seat in front hitting my knees, no room to store under the seat in front and try for any space and in general, even one of their today told me the seats suck:(

I think the OP was talking about the boarding procedure - not any of the things you mention.

I fly WN enough each year to get a free ticket or two.

I will say their boarding process is always faster than what other airlines are doing but to call it civilized and orderly is not that accurate in my experience.

I fly WN enough each year to get a free ticket or two.

I will say their boarding process is always faster than what other airlines are doing but to call it civilized and orderly is not that accurate in my experience.

The only thing I don't like about WN boarding is the slight anxiety that comes with not knowing exactly what seat I'll end up with. The trade-off is that the boarding process doesn't take 40 minutes. I haven't tried the new seats yet, but it's been years since I've taken a WN flight longer than two hours.

The huge plus of Southwest's boarding process is that it is quick, and much more efficient while on board. Most people seem to "get" that they pick wherever you want to sit, and they also seem to understand to line up by the number on your boarding card.

On board people for the most part sit down fairly quickly, and you never have the "you are in my seat" argument, and there are a lot fewer of the "can we switch seats so we can sit together?" discussions.

The public seems to have a sense of urgency to get in line and to be ready to board. Since they have taken the boarding pass from the passenger upon entering the plane, the infrequent passenger & kettles no longer have a slip of paper to stop and look at halfway down the plane, holding up the line, so the process is more efficient.

Since they have taken the boarding pass from the passenger upon entering the plane, the infrequent passenger & kettles no longer have a slip of paper to stop and look at halfway down the plane, holding up the line, so the process is more efficient.

Muy true. I am amazed at the number of people that forget how to count when they get on a plane. I know that row numbers aren't always exactly sequential, but they never go backwards.

(3) Service/cabin. On just-under 1 hour flights, there was pretty much the same amount of service on an AS SEA/SFO, i.e., one beverage service. The lack of carts means that the lavs are never obstructed, and the one cabin plane means the F cabin lav is never an issue. Want a drink? WN $5. WN=AS, more or less. WN>QX


I find it amazing that Skywest/DL won't do service on LAS-LAX, but WN does a full service on LAS-ONT (a good 15 minutes shorter than LAS-LAX).

The only downside to WN is there are two lavs on the plane whereas AS has three. Generally not a problem on hops under 2 hours, but on some of the longer flights the line in the back can get quite long.

I've never flown WN. Every time I was in PHX I'd be flying either AS or HP, and I'd see the WN kettle standing in line to check in. The lines would be a mile long, so I swore I'd never fly WN, ever.

You clearly haven't looked at a WN gate recently. Just yesterday at SEA, I had to push through a good 100 people that were crowding around the gate waiting for my AS flight to board.

I do fly SWA a lot and your single experience was very lucky. Spend any time on their forum and you will see many that beg to differ!

It's generally the same group of people (like it is here) that complain. I've flown the "evolve" interior a number of times and while it's not as roomy as it used to be, it's not as bad as people say--I'm 6'2 and I don't find it too miserable. No worse than DL or AS in the back.

Southwest is never my first choice if AS has the route I usually find it cheaper and the boarding process much more orderly. My knowledge and experience is limited to AS and SWA which is enough flight time for me:)

I do fly SWA a lot and your single experience was very lucky. Spend any time on their forum and you will see many that beg to differ! Their old style seats were comfortable. The new style eliminates leg room. At 5'10 I have the seat in front hitting my knees, no room to store under the seat in front and try for any space and in general, even one of their today told me the seats suck:(

I think the OP was talking about the boarding procedure - not any of the things you mention.
Sorry to be an epic fail. Not to be critical but I thought it would be clear from my first and second sentence that it was an observation on the boarding process. I will certainly try to limit my response to the narrow confines of the opening comment. So to be blunt: after flying 50 flights in 2011 and heading that way in 2012, I find it often it to be a confused process with many unfamiliar with the process.

I actually found the most civilized and speedy boarding to be on Horizon, but that's probably due to the smaller aircraft size and boarding through the forward and aft doors. Boarding on Alaska is not bad at stations whether they use the forward and aft doors, like PSP, BUR, SJD. I miss dual door boarding at SJC. I wish AS would open the rear door at more airports, but I guess the existing facilities don't allow it to happen.

I find the WN boarding process to be pretty smooth, although one thing that does slow things down is that everyone who boards first also wants to sit in the front of the plane, which tends to create a long jam in the jetway. I still think it's more efficient to start general boarding from the back of the plane. Also, thanks to bags fly free, there are fewer pax on WN abusing the carry-on luggage rules and fewer gate checked bags.

I've never actually done the math before, but I've often wondered if its even possible to accommodate one regulation sized carry-on bag, wheels pointed out, from every single passenger on a full flight? For example, an AS 737-800 has 157 seats, is there actually enough bin space to hold 157 regulation sized carry-ons?

Skymark was by far my most civilized domestic boarding experience. A moderately loaded 767 fully boarded in under 15 minutes. Boarding didn't even begin until ~20m before departure. I was quite stressed clutching my carry-on and omiyage, fearing that we might be 45m late. Everyone else was so calm and just flowed onto the plane and got into their seats without drama or chaos. No queueing on the jetway whatsoever. Japanese people shatter my notions about entropy.

WN is pretty efficient too. I never set foot in IAH when I lived in Houston. HOU+WN= win.

Japanese people shatter my notions about entropy.


Hands down, the most awesome quote on Flyertalk from today.
Having worked for JAL, I can completely agree... most of the time!

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I've flown WN once, PHX-SEA in 2008. This was when AS was coming out of their mid-00's operational nightmare (TANGO, anyone?). Alaska and Southwest had afternoon departures about the same time. The Southwest flight was fine, but what blew me away was that on that afternoon PHX-SEA segment, WN offered more food in coach than AS did on a late-night ANC-SEA leg a few nights before...in first class.

Chew on that for a few minutes (pun intended).

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I've flown WN once, PHX-SEA in 2008. This was when AS was coming out of their mid-00's operational nightmare (TANGO, anyone?). Alaska and Southwest had afternoon departures about the same time. The Southwest flight was fine, but what blew me away was that on that afternoon PHX-SEA segment, WN offered more food in coach than AS did on a late-night ANC-SEA leg a few nights before...in first class.

Chew on that for a few minutes (pun intended).

Just curious what food did WN offer?

I have flown them cross country (with stops) and never gotten more than a bag of peanuts/pretzels and a Nabisco snack on longer flights.

I guess you are saying AS didn't even offer snack mix?

Just curious what food did WN offer?

I have flown them cross country (with stops) and never gotten more than a bag of peanuts/pretzels and a Nabisco snack on longer flights.

I guess you are saying AS didn't even offer snack mix?

It's been four years, but as I recall WN offered several rounds of peanuts/pretzels plus individual boxes of wheat thins.

AS offered, on a late-evening departure to SEA from ANC, one small container of warmed nuts in First Class. I kid you not. Fortunately I fly AS enough in First to know that they've upped their FC game since then, but that experience has always stuck in my mind for its absurdity.

I wrote a trip report on it back in the days when I bothered to pay to post on a.net: http://www.airliners.net/aviation-forums/trip_reports/read.main/118651/?threadid=118651&searchid=118651&s=Chugach#ID118651