Originally Posted by
ursine1
Those that need extra time to board don't actually pre-board on Southwest, they board between the A and B groups.
Regardless of whatever you are "fine with," Southwest's pre-boarding policies are dictated by federal law.
Yes and no.
Southwest's policies distinguish between those who have special needs and those who ONLY need more time to board.
Originally Posted by Southwest.com
Preboarding is available for Customers who have a specific seating need to accommodate their disability and/or need assistance in boarding the aircraft or stowing an assistive device. If a Customer with a disability simply needs a little extra time to board, we will permit the Customer to board before Family Boarding, between the “A” and “B” groups. Those Customers who need extra time to board will receive a new boarding pass with an extra time designation. The designation serves as notification to our Operations (boarding) Agent that the Customer should be permitted to board before Family Boarding.
I don't recall ever actually seeing take advantage of the 'extra time' boarding designation. If you've checked in at T-24 or used EBCI and have a BP anywhere in the A group, there's no great motivation to get shunted back in the boarding order. I'm sure it happens, but it's much more attractive to simply declare that you have a disability and preboard.