tusphotog

No. It was last Friday. Weather at DFW was beautiful.

Look, I've been traveling 75k-100k miles a year for 8 years now. I know how the game is played. Unless there were extenuating circumstances (like a storm is imminent), there is no reason to push the last flight of the night 10 early when there's a group of connecting passengers trying to make the flight. It's not like their plane was an hour or two out. Their plane was blocked in at a gate 25 minutes before scheduled departure time. My friend and the folks from her flight would have made the flight had they pushed at the scheduled time.

Luckily my friend made it out of DFW that night to a WN city then backtracked home the next morning on WN. AA couldn't get her home until 9p the next day.

lougord99

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/south...t-call-wn.html

kerflumexed, you are playing with fire when you suggest that. There are a huge number of people, including myself, who will be gone with change fees.

nsx

Gone where? In the short run, my commute route is monopolized by Southwest.

Only people who fly competitive routes even have an option to switch, and the other carrier will certainly have change fees too. Probably higher fees than Southwest.

I think we'll just grumble, change our booking patterns (no more low-probability trips), and pay the change fees. I'll grumble the loudest since I have no recourse.

tusphotog

For me, it's easy. I'd be 90% on Alaska flights. No change fees for Golds.

I could see switching some of my intra-CA flying to VX (when DL doesn't work). Some co-workers rave about them.

Exiled in Express

I just jumped into the deep end of this Southwest thing this year for the no change fees, free bags, opportunistic fare sales. A carrot to get me to fly more is going to be more productive for both myself and the company rather than shaking me down for additional fees on the occasions I do happen to fly the new fee scheduled SWA.

3Cforme

There was a statement in Delta's earnings conference call this week. I don't recall who (of the three DL officers) said it, but it took the form

'Demand for air travel is a lot less elastic than you think.'

Kill the frequencies or double the cost, and for journeys <250 miles people will drive. For a lot of trips however, there is no good alternative. Gone where, indeed.

Ammonium

I was A-2 flying on a Tuesday this week. After the through-passengers and all the fat people with blue sleeves and their millions of family members, a row 7 window was the best I could do. There aren't many perks to Southwest--it's more about avoiding the middle seat.

If Southwest instituted changes fees, I would first consider moving to a coast so that I could fly less frequently and fly more often on United (where I could be upgraded to first/business on transcons with my colleagues). The would then consider getting a different job where I didn't have to fly as much. I would finally consider switching to United or American, who have better nonstop schedules with Southwest's recent cuts/expansions to new airports.

lougord99

I live in Chicago. Every place that I fly has 2-3 other airlines that fly non-stop.

InkUnderNails

It must be nice. Well, everything but the living in Chicago part.

Don't get me wrong. I love Chicago....for about 4-5 days. Then the traffic starts to get to me and the big buildings start to close in and I am ready to go home.

I live 100 miles from the closest commercial airport, and it is served in an almost exclusive nature by WN. I can get almost anywhere I want to go on WN as I do not travel internationally. I can also use DL, AA, UA and US but if I am not going to one of their hub cities it is nearly always a difficult connection, a higher cost or a tight RJ on at least one leg.

So, I use WN and maximize the experience as much as possible, which ain't much but it is a bit.

lougord99

If change fees are implemented, I will also cut my total flying in 1/2 and drive many of the short hauls.

nsx

Don't make me laugh that hard in the morning!

Chicago has one other transportation advantage: Direct trains to both airports. Fast service to get you downtown for only $2. You can even use the trains to get from ORD to MDW for an international connection.