Southwest changed my flight due to social distancing
Jul 14, 2020, 7:11 am
#46
Suspended
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: DCA
Programs: UA US CO AA DL FL
Posts: 50,262
DOT will do nothing. It's been accepted practice for years by many carriers.
Bottom line is that calling in advance is a smart thing when a carrier almost certainly has an overbooking (as it defines overbooking) situation. Those are rarely negotiations because it is easier to simply move on and call the next passenger. This is not new. Other carriers have done this for years. People tend to accept less when called in advance because they don't need to sit at the airport waiting.
At the airport, it is a reverse auction. What you want is irrelevant, it is whether there is some other passenger willing to take less than what you want. Once that passenger steps forward, you are SOL.
Bottom line is that calling in advance is a smart thing when a carrier almost certainly has an overbooking (as it defines overbooking) situation. Those are rarely negotiations because it is easier to simply move on and call the next passenger. This is not new. Other carriers have done this for years. People tend to accept less when called in advance because they don't need to sit at the airport waiting.
At the airport, it is a reverse auction. What you want is irrelevant, it is whether there is some other passenger willing to take less than what you want. Once that passenger steps forward, you are SOL.
Jul 14, 2020, 8:49 am
#47
Join Date: Jan 2006
Posts: 69
Most airlines use FF status or ticket price as a factor in denied boarding. These are trying times and the airlines are struggling to react. I typically pay two to three times the lowest fares because I have to be where I am going and be there on time. This may not sound fair but I am flying about 20% as much as I have during the past 40 years and when I do fly it is my only choice. Sorry that you were delayed for two hours,
but, again, these are difficult times.
but, again, these are difficult times.
Last edited by MitchR; Jul 14, 2020 at 8:50 am Reason: typo