KeithinAL

The forward pitch of the seat makes if extremely uncomfortable. I feel like I spend the whole time trying to keep from sliding out of the seat

FWAAA

Your experience is exactly why I predict lukewarm success for Southwest next October from DAL Love Field when the last vestiges of the Wright Amendment expire.

Right now, WN dominates the intra-Texas short-haul markets from DAL like HOU, AUS and SAT. In addition, WN has a pretty good market share on other within-perimeter routes like DAL-STL, DAL-MCI and DAL-MSY. As they're all within the Wright Amendment perimeter, by definition, they're reasonably short flights.

WN would love to dominate DAL-LAX and DAL-SNA and DAL-SFO as well as BOS, PHL, LGA and DCA, all routes where AA and/or US have the lion's share of the business travelers (from DFW).

But the business-traveler customers WN will be hoping to attract at DAL for its new longer-haul domestic flights aren't the typical kettles, they're probably currently AA elites who fly from DFW. And if they're even willing to try WN on a four to five hour adventure (from boarding time to parking at the gate at their west coast or east coast city), I don't predict that they'll do it more than once. Especially if they're tall.

The seats just plane suck. I willingly sit in them for short flights (an hour to 90 minutes) but the thought of sitting in them from LAX to DAL and back is a non-starter. And if WN doesn't fix the legroom situation, then I predict that WN will have a difficult time filling the new DAL longer-haul flights next year with any appreciable number of last-minute business travelers. DAL-AUS/SAT/HOU? Sure. An hour is completely tolerable. DAL-BOS/LGA/SEA/SFO? Nope.

jb3t

I'm drafting a letter to WN as we speak just to document to them why I have decided to move flights from WN to other airlines. Not sure who it should go to though. Any ideas?

Not that I expect a response but I'm that displeased that I need to do this. To me, ita all about the seats. I can't take them anymore.

heyeaglefn

You are right, they don't care. I wouldn't even bother with a letter to be honest.

joshua362

I avoid commercials like the plague but aren't they running ads during NFL games to the tune of "if it matters to you, it matters to us?" Like a comfortable seat?

Perhaps they need to be reminded of this?

tmorse6570

We were loving SW since 2005, but switched back to Delta in 2012. Delta introduced Economy Comfort domestically just about the same time SW went with Evolve. I really miss SW, but we're both tall and just can't take those new seats.

I can't stand the fees and all the crazy crowding the gate area at boarding time, but Delta does have more non-stops and they've been selling FC at huge discounts at about 4-5 weeks out. Delta's regular coach is horrible, so we just pay extra for EC or snag a last minute FC.

I emailed SW about leaving because of Evolve. They responded by saying they were sorry, but they believed most people liked it better. I really doubt that's true.

toomanybooks

Yes, they keep saying that, and also in their presentations to analysts. I think it's just a flat-out lie.

divemistressofthedark

Well, what else are they going to say? "People tell us they hate it, but we're keeping it anyway to maximize our slipping profitability, and will resist making adjustments to it as long as we can"? Sigh.

nsx

I can't think of any other feature of Southwest's product about which the company's official opinion is so opposed to customer perception. Even RR 2.0, which the company touted as an improvement, had real benefits for a sizable number of people, probably a majority of Southwest's customers (the infrequent flyers).

If FT experience is not somehow special, and it really couldn't be on something like a seat, only a very small percentage of customer actually prefer Evolve. A substantial percentage consider it a serious devaluation of the product. Management and analysts seem to be completely ignorant of this fact.

toomanybooks

I bet they asked a focus group some question like "Recently Southwest introduced new, thinner, more comfortable seats. Do you prefer them?"

formeraa

I would like to ask SHORTER people how they like Evolve. At 5'9", I'm relatively indifferent, although there is definitely less legroom (despite what they say). My Mother, at 5'2" loves Evolve, because her feet didn't touch the floor in the previous seating. Her feet were numb after a long trip.

So, I guess it depends. I can definitely understand how taller people would be more uncomfortable.

NextTrip

I am not.

Peter T.

That's a salient point. I'm 5'7" and I'm fine with Evolve. It's in no way an improvement, but I'm not really bothered by it.

(I do wish if WN was going to go to the trouble of replacing all their seats, that they would have embraced the 21st century and brought in seats that had IFE screens on the seatbacks.)

Here on Flyertalk it's definitely the tall people who hate the Devolve seats the most. But I don't hear too much counterbalancing love for them from short people.

Maybe short people don't fly as much as tall people?

rsteinmetz70112

Short People Short people don't have a problem with less leg room because they got less legs
RANDY NEWMAN IS 6'0", NEITHER TOO TALL NOR TOO SHORT.

ursine1

IMHO, not having seatback screens but instead serving content to individual passengers' devices is embracing the 21st century. Unfortunately, WN's implementation of this leaves some room for improvement.

I'm completely average at 5'11", and I hate the new seats/legroom.