Since I usually pay other carrier less to begin with (getting low fares is more of an art with legacies than on WN, the more you know the more you save on legacies), I save that $500+ upfront and don't have to spend my time watching ding fares, but do spend more time finding that lower fare in the first place.

On top of paying less $ to start with, since I am a very FF flyer, I usually pay for coach and fly F upgraded for free, eat real food on longer flights for free along with unlimitted free drinks on all flights. Then I use my legacy FF miles for trips I actually need that would have cost me thousands of $, thus saving me thousands of real $. WN awards coincide with cheap fares, making the return on $ spent much lower. Again, why should I care if the carrier I am flying is loosing money? I don't bank my FF miles long term; I earn a million FF miles per year and spend about that many too, keeping balances relativley low. I should choose the airline that meets my needs for the least $; "their financial death spiral" is irrelevent, unless they are likely to stop flying soon, which is not the case at the moment.

Sorry, I am getting off topic. My main point on this thread is simple: When it comes to "can I take the next flight without any fees?" WN's policies are more restrictive than most other large US airlines.