Southwest loaded its new flight schedule, through August 10, 2012, at about 3 PM Central Time on Sunday November 13. This was a day earlier than originally announced, an advance that was noted by FT member
Denise W on November 7 but which I forgot about. On Sunday I was preoccupied attempting to evade a massive devaluation of British Airways Executive Club miles when the new redemption scheme takes effect Wednesday.
The next schedule extension is projected to occur on January 16, 2012, for travel through September 28, 2012. Since January 16 is a Monday again, look for an extension occurring mid-day on Sunday the 15th or early in the morning (about 6:30 AM Central Time) on Monday.
In other news:
1. The option to apply for an AirTran credit card and earn a sign-up bonus that might later transfer to Rapid Rewards disappeared a few days ago, just a month before I planned to do that.
See
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/airtr...visa-gone.html
2. Check your Rapid Rewards account to see if you can sign up for a double points promotion first posted by FT member
FindAWay. It gives you double points for Chicago to/from California from 11/09/2011 to 03/31/2012.
See
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...31-2012-a.html
3. Southwest's web site now displays actual departure and arrival times for past flights on the
flight status page. We've been asking for this for years!
4. FT member
mritty has noticed that the explicit allowance of hidden city ticketing has been dropped from Southwest's Customer Service Commitment. This occured during the last 12 months according to research by ftnoob. We don't know why the language was changed, because there appears to be no policy change.
See
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...y-allowed.html
5. FT member
Peter Silberman noted a change in the Contract of Carriage that allows Southwest to cancel the rest of your itinerary if you no-show a flight. If you needed it, here is another reason to book your trips as one-way reservations.
See
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...ge-change.html
6. FT member
707Flyer writes that Southwest is considering adding 4 seats to the standard 137-seat configuration. One row will be added forward of 11ABC and one seat will be added at 11F. The new seats will be thinner, so that current legroom will be preserved even with the extra row. The exit row legroom for 11ABC and 12F will of course decrease dramatically.
See
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...300-700-a.html
7. Last but not least, FT member
iahphx tells us how to get $25 off a round trip on Southwest for travel through January 30, 2012. You need 7 day advance purchase and blackouts are Nov 22-29 and Dec 15-Jan 2. Travel can be anywhere on the system. It's not restricted to trips to and from Florida. Also, you should allow several days, up to a week, to receive the discount code by email.
See
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...available.html