swdke

What is the status with Southwest purchase of Airtran? I don't hear much about it, or see much of it on the web sites? When will Airtran's aircraft get new colors? Or, will Airtran be operated as a seperate business? A lot of Airtran flights out of DAY, but no Southwest. When can I use my Southwest Rapid Rewards points for flights out of DAY? Thanks!

ursine1

Southwest is having issues negotiating with the pilots union, and has presented multiple scenarios for the integration. http://www.ajc.com/business/southwes...f-1198877.html

swdke

Looks like the Pilots just settled with an agreement:
http://campaign.r20.constantcontact....H7z1ZETA%3D%3D

I get the impression the Pilots Union were not infavor of the AirTran purchase.

CALeeIII

From wnflyguy at www.airliners.net:

"Hot new rumor this week is the Nov 13 schedule release for next years summer flying going to have the biggest tweaks to both WN and FL flying.

Rumor has it that a FULL Code share will be released, Open seating on economy seats only on all FL flights, Bags fly free and no change fee at FL.

717 FL crew base coming to LAS or MDW.

New WN/FL crew base coming to LAX,TPA or FLL.

5 small FL cities being cut.

MIA FL flights moving up to 10 flights a day."

LegalTender

Open seating is where I get off.

tusphotog

Cool. Another seat for me.

plagwate

+1 ^
I've got 16 credits in the bank so I'll be looking for a RT to blown them on in the coming weeks.

swdke

How does open seating help keep Southwest fares low? Is the computer software to allow assigned seats really that expensive?

bpe

I think that's what they want people to think. My guess is that a few people like it so they call it a 'perk' and keep it.
It must have been easier/cheaper back when things weren't computerized and they gave out those colored cards with numbers instead of boarding passes though.

TMOliver

According to WN staff, it dramatically reduces boarding time, allowing quicker 'turns". It may not be open seating, but WN a/c spend far less time parked at the gate (and more in the air) than do their legacy counterparts.

alggag

It's about time we start seeing some tangible changes, I know the contract problems were holding things up but that really shouldn't have been an issue with things like FF reciprocity.

saneman

Let us see how WN does in boarding times when they come to ATL airport. That is such hogwash about faster boarding. I have been on Airtran flights that boarded fast when the GAs had the incentive to get the flight moving. It is all about the GA and FA attitude and tone in getting faster boarding to work. One recent flight, I was lucky to have a good Airtran crew and they proactively started to checking in carryons that might be a problem.

Also, I wonder if WN's free bag policy helps limit the carryon problem. I felt most airlines should have a courtesy checkin of bags that are 30 pounds or less. This could help people checkin light suitcases and not overburden the cabin.

The only WN change I am looking forward to is the free credit for flights not made. I get free bags at Airtran as an elite member anyway. They have already shown their disdain for XM radio. At this point, I will not boycott WN. But I will have absolutely no loyalty. All my corporate bookings will be on DL because I want my assigned seats. Besides WN is no cheaper for trips made on less notice. I have seen a huge jump in sale fares from ATL to big cities like Philly, BOSTON, NY, Chicago.

nsx

Correct. Southwest studied assigned seating in 2007 and concluded the boarding time difference was minimal. The decision was based on other factors, possibly including reduced gate agent workload for changing seat assignments.

Correct again. Bag fees would delay flights measurably due to spinning (looking up and down the aisle for overhead space) and gate checking.

Being able to chance or cancel flights and re-use the money is addictive. It is also fairly complicated to do well, but you have FTers here to help. You need to keep a spreadsheet that includes the expiration date and dollar amount for each record locator.

My advice to prepare for funds re-use: Read the FAQ sections on this subject. Go back 2 days later and read them again. Make a spreadsheet for your reservations. Then you will be ready to go when the new functionality appears.

mke9499

Business Finance Magazine's interview with WN CFO Laura Wright provides some additional insight.

http://businessfinancemag.com/articl...ra-wright-1108

saneman

Now with online checkin and kiosk based checkins being more common these days, one would think that the need to go to a gate agent to get seats changes must have gone down dramatically. We can sort it out at the kiosk itself.