justhere

There are many good reasons to fly WN. Just as there are many good reasons to fly other airlines. All have their pros and cons and some work better for people than others. Certainly being on time is important however you should keep in mind that no matter how much you fly, your anecdotal data is statistically insignificant. You are flying on less than about 0.007% of WN flights.
I haven't done the math on it but I would guess that even with some airlines overall on time performance being better than others, to any given individual traveler, there's probably not much if any statistical difference which airline you fly.

s0ssos

I have had IRROPS, and it is annoying with Southwest. But so is it with anybody else. I feel at Southwest everybody gets treated equally (all left in the dark, cold, whatever). Whereas for the other airlines it depends on whether you have status, and in addition what mood the agent happens to be in that day (I got booked on AA when I was flying UA).
That is a big deal, for Southwest, and with all their connecting flights they have a higher risk of issues if you are going trans-continental.

But my point is that for a person who doesn't fly much, I think Southwest is much friendlier.

Peoriaman1

Depends on what you mean by "doesn't fly much". I only fly a few roundtrips a year... So by some definitions, that's "not much". But its enough that I can fly 100% on points if I choose to do so (I'll pay for tickets only if there's NO possibility I might have to cancel due to change of plans, weather, etc). Try that with AA, United or Delta.

Plus, I'll take MDW over ORD every time. No contest there.

xliioper

A lot of it is going to depend on which airports you tend to frequent. Someone flies into/out of the northeast or midwest frequently is generally going to experience more issues than someone who is based in the southwest. Exhibit A: Flightaware's cancellation board for today -- https://flightaware.com/live/cancelled/

InkUnderNails

There may be some truth to the infrequent flyer statement by the OP. (I prefer the term travel naive.)

On Southwest you get a number and basically line up in order. Stuff we learned in kindergarten. Low stress boarding. Yes, there are exceptions but for the travel naive is is not important. They get on the plane and think how easy that was compared to other airlines.

I recently flew a RT on DL with connections both ways. I never did figure out the logic of the system. DL lovers should never call WN boarding "cattle car" as a slur. DL boarding is "sold out rock concert general admission" boarding.

Proudelitist

No. For one thing, their profile is more bus-like in terms of routing. They don't offer much in the way of international, and there is only one class of service. They are not alliance members. Rather, they are more for city to city travel, and generally require alot more stops. It never hurts to join their rewards programs but at the end of the day all you get is a free Y seat or a better shot at boarding of a Y seat (depending on thru pax and BS fares etc etc)

They tend to cater to budget conscious (cheap) leisure travelers, although it is a bit of myth considering that their prices are comparable..and often sometimes even more..than legacy carriers and other budget carriers like Spirit. This seems to be a cultural memory hangover from the days pre-2009 when they really WERE cheaper than most other carriers, but also a partly the fact that it's harder to comparison shop fares to WN, because WN doesn't show their fares on travel websites that compare fares.

Opinions are split on their boarding process. Personally, I hate it. As someone who flies frequently and gets F boarding on other carriers I find it a bit of a mad scramble in general, and while reserved seat poaching is moot on WN, the problem seems to be moved from the aircraft to the gate where you get line jumpers either by intent or by ignorance, confused people, and so forth...I suppose it beats the way it USED to be where people would camp out in the line for hours, and claim that their luggage held their space. Seat saving is another problem. Especially the cocky kind where someone tries to save an exit row for their C boarding pass companions etc. And the sneaky little tricks of putting junk on the seat, pretending to be asleep, faking illness etc. All of it before the eyes of indifferent FA's.

The attitude of WN crew varies. For me it varies between terrible and adequate. I rack my brain to think of a time one went above and beyond for me. What really irritates me is the whole camp counselor, chumminess, levity schtick. It's obvious and contrived, and about as amusing as a pot-bellied late middle ager who approaches a worker in a store and says "working hard or hardly working??"...incidentally, that is the exactly type of person that finds it funny. Maybe it plays in middle-america well, where public levity of the cornball variety is considered charming.

It's cringy. As a matter of fact, years ago their hold message when you were on hold with them was the "Southwest Rap"..i cringe just thinking about it. And that sort of sums up WN for me. There is a lack of dignity to it that makes travel that much more painful.

I do fly them, but only when routing is beneficial and the flight is both direct and short. Otherwise it is worth it, sometimes even with stops, to take a legacy.

worldwidedreamer

I'm a United Gold, and WN Companion Pass holder. The overall Y experience on WN surpasses UA for flights less than about 2,000 miles. Living in SF it is hard to take WN with two stops to reach the East Coast; also have yet to take them over an ocean. Both airlines meet very different needs in my life---and for what it is worth the lack of UA upgrades really negates the fact that they have first class cabins. The big improvement to WN in recent years is that my most frequently used airports (i.e. OAK/RNO/LAS) now have accessible lounges courtesy of AmEx. You'd be surprised how often I chat with fellow WN passengers and learn that they are also elites at AS/UA/DL/AA who use WN when it is the better choice. WN earns most of my domestic business travel budget solely due to the flexibility of their tickets. Even as a UA Plat it was very difficult to SDC without costing and arm and a leg.

Shombolar

As others have pointed out, booking rewards flights on WN is easier than it is on most other airlines — and when you book with points, there's no change or cancellation fees. If there's a great fare somewhere I want to go, I just book it, and if taking the trip doesn't work out, I just cancel and the points are immediately returned.

In addition, I like to spend a few weekends a year in Chicago, and WN has several nonstops a day to MDW from my home town, so prices usually are very good.

jeffandnicole

Then how come people are stuck in an airport or city for days after their flight...and a whole bunch of other flights...have been cancelled? They aren't all flying Southwest...especially at airports that Southwest doesn't even use.

IRROPS isn't the savior it once was.

kennycrudup

Hang on- if OP is primarily ex-SJC, then no- avoid WN at all costs! They are horrible and suck in so many ways I don't have enough pixels to list them all! Try that airline two gates to the left with the Eskimo on the tails, instead- I hear it's got great beer.

(This is 100% true and has nothing to do with the fact that loads ex-SJC are so freakin' high that I could be going to somewhere like OMA at 3p on a Weds and sure enough, they're looking for VDBs. Nope, nothing to do with that! )

Peoriaman1

AA boarding is "Who concert in Cincinnati" boarding.

kennycrudup

Too soon!

LegalTender

Probably because the airport is/was closed. Interline and code share agreements help clear backups when ops resume.

beachmouse

WN's single aircraft type model gives them flexibility to move planes around to where they feel they are most needed in MX or weather situation. The down side is that if you're on the fringes of their route network, you will get shafted in the name of them keeping higher priority routes on schedule.

Will I book WN when it makes sense for assorted other reasons? Yes. Will I also assume there's about a 75% chance of an hour or later delay if I'm taking the last flight of the night back to ECP or PNS? Yes.

Proudelitist

The other downside is that in the event of an FAA recall/repair on a part, maintenance directive or grounding order the ENTIRE airline is down for the count. WN has all their eggs in one basket.