danielonn

OK lets set the facts straight.

I boarded at ABQ in Row 1A when we arrived LAX the Flight Attendant comes and does her count and I keep my 1A. Later into the boarding process when 90 percent of the rows were taken a COS passenger comes on. At this point bin space was limited. By the time boarding completed I went to the Flight Attendant at the front to explain the situation. The flight attendant reseats me to the aisle and the COS passenger is still in the middle seat talking with her traveling companion.

The COS passenger encroached into my space and we left the gate. I asked for a Duty Manager to meet me at SJC and the Duty Manger said I should contact Southwest but gave me $50 and I said to please document it. I wrote into Customer Service, plus had a kind 1800 representative document it as well along with the Duty Manager who noted my PNR.

I had to sit in an odd position against the arm rest that is fixed to the aisle. I literally had less than 1/2 of the seat I paid for. I would say a Quarter of my seat was mine to be fair but it felt less than that. I made the best out of the situation given how uncomfortable it was.

I am compassionate towards people of size however if they knew they would encroach upon a fellow passenger they could at least have bought a second seat with the potential of it being refunded. I am not just whining but I firmly believe the policy was not handled per Southwest's COS policy.

Rather than the Flight Attendant ask the Gate Agent Supervisor to come onboard he said"Oh just deal with it". Even if its a 1 hour flight or a 5 hour flight to be dismissed like this when they could see I had to sit in an abnormal position during the flight. I did not make a scene.

So please stop thinking I am asking for compensation just because. Lets say I reserved a Hotel Room and the hotel was full and they stuck a stranger in my room that I paid for. Same thing here I do not want a stranger coming into my personal space pushing me into the fixed arm rest.

smmrfld

This just gets better...now the OP claims he only had a quarter of his seat. By any chance did you get a pic? Would be interesting to say the least.

NextTrip

Yes, let's get the facts straight.

COS sat in the middle seat, leaving the aisle open? Where was COS' companion seated? You got up from your window seat and spoke to the flight attendant; then sat at the aisle, rather than returning to the window? If it was a full flight, how did you switch from window to aisle? Why didn't you ask the COS to sit at the window and leave the middle empty? Why couldn't your carry-on bag just stay in the overhead bin where you put it and you move to a different seat?

What am I missing here?

Allan38103

Besides the obvious entertainment value, one benefit of studying FT threads like this is to learn something in the event something goes wrong.

WN has a different seating system; you either like it, or you don't. The "entertainment" part of reading FT is like watching two kids arguing about who's sitting in the other's space in the back of the car. (See Chevy Chase in National Lampoon's movie Vacation.) It will never end. Unfortunately, seating issues like aisle, window, bulkhead, exit row, IDB/VDB, etc., cannot be fixed after the flight lands. All that WN can do then is throw some LUV $$ your way and hope you go away less unhappy. But some issues CAN be handled. Like COS.

Assuming all the facts are correct as posted (I know what happens when you "ASSume"), WN policy is for COS to buy two seats. He/she is the only one who gets to be guaranteed two seats next to each other. No one else. And, in order to make this work, the COS gets to board earlier. Again, you either like this policy, or you don't. If the flight has at least one empty seat, in addition to the COS's extra seat, the COS gets his money back after the flight lands. If the flight is completely full, the COS ends up paying. (Someone correct me if I'm wrong)

So, assuming correct facts, it looks like OP had the window bulkhead seat; the other two in the row must have been empty initially. COS sits down in the two empties - his purchased seat plus the extra one he paid for. OP moves to the empty aisle seat on the other side of COS, which also doesn't work. FA can't help. Whether the COS ever got reimbursed for his extra seat isn't relevant to this discussion, except that if there was another seat somewhere in back the OP would have had the option to move. WN can't force anyone to sit next to a COS, but they will not prohibit it either.

OP says he had already stowed his bags in the overhead. Not relevant.

Customer service failure on the part of WN? Only if there was an empty seat in back and they didn't tell the OP that he could move. OP gets a LUV voucher for his trouble.

Final note. Maybe someone from WN is reading this. Unless they get it directly from the GA, FA's have no way to know if the flight is going to be completely full until it's completely full. They will say it's full in order to get people out of the aisles and into the (middles) only seats left.

NextTrip

The COS gets a refund for the second (or third) seat whether the flight is full or not.

From the SWA website:

Why would a Customer of size purchase a second seat knowing they can get a complimentary second seat at the airport?
Having a second seat purchased in advance allows us to account for the inventory need and greatly helps reduce the likelihood of an oversale situation (having more confirmed Customers waiting to board than seats on the aircraft). Also, there are a number of Customers who do not want to be approached at the airport or have a conversation with an Agent about their seating needs. These Customers of size prefer to know they have the number of seats they require, and we wanted to give them that choice. We will also refund all extra seat purchases, even if the flight oversells.

danielonn

Companion was in 1A(window). Every seat was taken. The flight attendant suggested while I was using the lav a solution since they would refuse to get a Gate Agent and to comply with the Flight Attendant I sat in the aisle still not comfortable. Hope you see the picture.

Sorry I did not take a photo wish I did now.

danielonn

All the facts are true. A flight was oversold or filled to the brim and they did not ask for volunteers(I would have done so if given the opportunity). If the COS paid for the second seat either the COS could have been reaccommodated on the next available flight or I would have opted to fly on a later flight given that compensation was paid etc.

danielonn

So the COS and Companion were together(Business Partner). Business partner had the Window, COS in the Middle(no empty seat) and i sat in the aisle. The FA did not even offer another seat to the COS and companion with middle open. After making the situation known to the FA at the first available opportunity before the door closed they could have and should have given the option for the COS/Companion to move to an open row hence a few rows back or offer me a row with a Window or Aisle if that were available.

The pilot announced that all seats are taken and that everyone will have someone next to them. The COS passenger boarded about 5-10 minutes into the boarding process along with their Business traveling companion.

Allan38103

Whose companion was in 1A?
Again, where was OP? "The FA suggested...a solution". Through the lav door? To the OP? The COS? To the companion? Whose companion?

Clarify, please.

danielonn

The Customer of Size's Business companion was in 1A, COS in 1B and I was in 1C. Even if the COS sat in 1A Business Companion in 1B and I in 1 C the room would be squished as the Business Companion would have to lean into my seat thus pushing me to the edge either way.

Get it? Thanks for allowing me to clarify.

Allan38103

Got it. Thanks for clarifying.

OP started in 1A, got up and went to the lav during the boarding break.
Companion was with COS. Both boarded together. COS's companion took OP's 1A seat while OP was in lav. COS took 1B. FA told someone in the lav (OP? COS? Companion?) to sit in 1C. (It doesn't matter who the FA actually told because there wasn't enough room in 1A 1B and 1C for all 3 to fit anyway)

If WN didn't have an open seat elsewhere, it's a failure on their part. The policy isn't at fault; the execution was faulty in this case. It doesn't help to say "well, I would have...", or "OP should have done..." It's too late for that. The flight is over. They need to do better next time. OP is entitled to compensation commensurate with the failure.

Finkface

Wiat, so there were rows with an open middle? And/or an empty row a few rows back? Why didn't you just move to an empty middle or to that open row a few rows back? Color me confused.

NextTrip

And what is OP entitled to for a one hour flight besides the $50 voucher already received? Is COS' companion and COS entitled to the same compensation because COS didn't reserve an extra seat?

NextTrip

Thanks for the clarification.

jeffandnicole

If the COS boarded the plane without buying that second seat, that's his fault. But then it becomes an ugly nightmare for the airline. Any airline.

We've seen the news stories where a COS was asked to leave the plane. And the media instantly sides with the COS, showing sympathy for that person. The airline is the evil empire. But we don't see it from the view of Daniel, the guy who got stuck next to the COS and was ultimately the one inconvenienced.

In this case, COS is long gone. SW had its policy, but once COS boarded, there wasn't much they could do without sounding like unsympathetic idiots. Daniel was the one stuck...and is trying to deal with the situation.

Personally, while he may ultimately get some additional monopoly money out of it to use on a future flight, he had to deal with days or weeks of aggravation. Taking the $50 and dropping the issue probably would've been the best bet for his mental health!