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Think Southwest’s new boarding policy sucks? Try Ryanair

September 26, 2007

Reaction to Southwest Airlines’ new boarding policy that goes into effect next week has been surprisingly positive. Sure, a few parents have grumbled that they won’t get priority boarding anymore, but most of them have taken a “wait-and-see” approach to the rule change.

And so did I — until I got a note from Craig Puller, who recently flew from London to Stockholm on Ryanair with his wife and two young children. After hearing his story, I became convinced that Southwest’s new policy could spell disaster for families flying with young children.

Ryanair offers open boarding like Southwest, but recently added a priority seating option that allows passengers who pay extra to get on the plane early. Many industry-watchers believe Southwest is looking at the Ryanair model as a way of generating extra revenues, and that it may eventually adopt a similar pay-for-boarding scheme.

Puller’s outbound trip went off without a hitch. Ryanair allowed his family to get on the plane early so that it could find seats together. But on the way back, he and his family ran into trouble.

“When we tried to board, the agent got quite nasty with us and informed us that we don’t have priority,” he says. “Children are no longer being pre-boarded — the policy changed last November. She said I should have been asked at ticket counter if I wanted to purchase family priority seating, which I wasn’t, and that I needed to wait till priority boarding was complete.”

So the Pullers stepped aside, but told the agent they were worried that the might not be able to sit together. “Our pleas were ignored,” says Puller.

When we got on the plane it was almost full. The flight attendants couldn’t be bothered to ask anyone to move. Jessica (3) sat alone, I sat alone, and Nathan (2) and Elizabeth found two seats together. When we arrived, I tried to find a customer service manager, but I couldn’t. I wrote a letter detailing my complaints, but was sent a letter that outlined their changed policy of pre-boarding.

Before I continue, a disclaimer: I have three young children, and can’t possibly be unbiased about this subject. To me, separating a three-year-old girl from her family is heartless and cruel. Also, Puller is not just a reader of my blog. He’s also an old college friend.

Given all that, you might expect me to say Southwest’s new boarding policy is the worst policy decision since it forced fat passengers to buy two seats. But I’m not ready to do that — yet.

Southwest can implement its new rule in a compassionate way, ensuring that families with young children can sit together. Or it can go the way of Ryanair and turn its back on its youngest passengers.

We’ll have the answer next week.

Christopher Elliott is the author of Scammed: How to Save Your Money and Find Better Service in a World of Schemes, Swindles, and Shady Deals. Critics have called it “eye-opening” and “inspiring” — it’ll “grab your attention and won’t let go.” Order your copy now on Amazon, Barnes & Noble or iTunes.

40 comments

  • Joe F.

    I agree that forcing families to split up when they have either small children or older children with special needs that should sit with their parents makes little sense. However, I whole hearted agree with Southwest when they require the pre-boarded families sit past Row 12 or whatever it was. When I used to fly WN it always angered me when I made an effort to check in early to get an early boarding card seeing the people with card #137 march ahead of me and get primo up front seats simply because they had a kid. If you travel with kids and receive priority boarding as a result, which I have no problem with given the challenges associated of traveling with little kids, I do not you should take advantage and grab good seats simply because you can. That is patently unfair.

    Now, with Ryanair and the other ‘ultra low fare’ euro carriers – you can NOT tell me that you do not know what you are getting. It is common knowledge you get what you pay for, and how motivated can anyone be working for peanuts and dealing with passengers who expect service at 14 euros fare from Athens to London? You pay 50 euros for a family of 4 to travel 500 miles across Europe, you really need to read the fine print – which includes the family pre-board ‘fee.’ Ryanair would charge for compressed cabin air to allow the pax to remain conscious if they could.

    Once again, fine print given, and the hidden vague words hidden in the tariff taketh away.

  • http://kathika.com/adventure/20070921-00129/ jessica

    When my kids were younger we used SW all the time the good rates and preboarding made it perfect. . However one time we were late and had a “separated seating incident”, luckily another passenger was kind enough to switch, but from that day forward we never used SW again.

    If they wan tot kill family travel this the way …

  • Lisa

    I don’t understand the problem. If parents feel it is important to sit together, then they need to make the effort to get to the airport early or go online and check in early.

    I am SICK of parents subjecting me and the rest of the world to their darlings while the parent blissfully goes about their business. I have had bottles and one absolutely revolting sippy cup spilled on me, been stepped on, had numerous seats kicked for hours on end, had to sit next to one moron who changed her kid IN THE SEAT after two disgusting diapers. The kid was sick and having that stench waft through the cabin was almost more than I could take. I have had my hair pulled, an outfit ruined because of sprayed ketchup after one six year old brought his McDonald’s meal onto the plane and used his ketchup packet as a stress ball.

    The flight attendants seem powerless to stop it, the parents give me that stupid grin and shrug their shoulders like they don’t know why little Maggie or Jordan is acting this way and I and the rest of the traveling public are left to endure the experience.

    Feel sorry for parents because they don’t get priority boarding? No, you’ll have to follow the same rules the rest of us do. That is why I make every effort to check in as soon as possible, pay extra, whatever it takes to get seated in the emergency exit row. I don’t need the extra leg room, but those under 15 can’t sit there so at least I know I won’t be seated next to a kid, though that doesn’t save me from the seat kickers and the hair pullers.

  • jlawrence01

    What i find ironic is that this website spends SO MUCH time criticizing the legacy airlines for their POOR service (which is justifiable) yet spends an inordinate amount of time attacking or blaming Southwest Airlines for all the airline woes.

    Southwest Airlines CONSISTENTLY tells you what you are going to get and nearly always delivers what they promise. Unlike the legacy airlines, they do NOT try to be everything to everybody.

    Personally, I thought that Southwest was making an error changing its boarding policies when they were making adjustments to their boarding procedures. I thought that they were going to alienate their LOYAL customers to satisfy those who will not fly Southwent much anyway. However, I like the changes that are being made.

  • Bob

    1. I don’t object to Southwest’s policy of asking passengers to pay for the number of seats that they occupy. It seems extremely fair to me. I pay for the number of seats that I occupy, including a seat for my toddler so she isn’t climbing all over you.

    2. It’s not in your best interest to make parents with children wait in line rather than preboard. What you want is for my child to run around like a maniac in the terminal so she sleeps through the flight. If I make her stand/sit still in line, guess who’s going to be causing a commotion on the plane?

    3. It’s in your best interest to let parents preboard and SIT TOGETHER. That way, our kids can disturb other parents who are more understanding.

    I can empathize with you watching us board before you, but at the same time, realize that it is for your own comfort in the end. If you make us board with you, then you are making us sit with you. Ask yourself: is that what you really want? To sit next to my toddler?

    I didn’t think so.

  • Paulette B.

    Why do people with young children feel that their “rights” cancel out everyone else’s? Southwest had been notorious for allowing 10 or more “family members” to board with a single child — effectively turning some “A” boarding passes into “B’s” and “B’s” to “C’s” — so I think their policy change is a good thing. I’ve had the misfortune of sitting next to some of these brats, whose parents are able to tune out and ignore their antics. And before you ask, yes, I am a parent; but my daughter knew from an early age how to comport herself in public. On another note: What’s wrong with charging a person for two seats when he/she can’t fit into one? A heavy person’s rights don’t extend into the space I paid for — and I refuse to lift up my armrest to accommodate their overflow.

  • Tom B

    Ryanair’s attitude is always a you should have known better because “it’s on our website”. (As for the priority boarding, Aer Lingus are starting to charge varying amounts for seats on their planes, so the disease is spreading!)

    Frankly I’ve managed to never fly on Ryanair and hopefully never will – preferring the slightly more expensive carriers… though some people love them.. “you makes your choices and sleeps in your beds” as the old saying goes

    Oh and don’t anyone think you can interline with Ryanair… even one Ryanair flight to another. they. don’t. interline. or. transfer. baggage.

  • Glen

    I think Southwest has it right this time. I too am tired of getting to the airport early and watching 20+ passengers march ahead because they have small children. Like a previous writer said, they too can get to the airport early if they want to be at the front of the line (and yes, I too have kids!).

  • Joe F.

    Ok, how about we price airline tickets differently. An airplane has fixed costs and variable costs. So, we pay a fixed price [which is what it costs for the airplane and labor] and then when we show up we pay by the pound. If you over pack or over eat, you are gonna pay more since it costs more to fly you from point a to point b. Stop charging for luggage and seats and priority boarding, and conduct an auction before the plane leaves.

    “OK folks, we are NOT full today. In fact ,the can be 6 lucky people who can sit in thier own row. That’s right, what does the bidding open at? $20? Do I hear $20? For your very own row today.”

    On down to Priority Boarding – “thats right, get on the plane right after the people with their own row, choose your very own aisle seat in the first ten rows. The bidding starts at $30.”

    Then we charge 25 cents per lb of weight on top of the fixed costs, you stand on a scale right before you go through security with your luggage, pay your money and then get your boarding card. This way, fat people are not ‘discriminated against,’ and still get two seats. Thin people pay less – what a way to encourage losing weight.

    There are all kinds of new ways to pay for airlines. Just stop charging for tickets all together and perhaps a Wheel of Fortune that gives you the chance of a free ticket. Spin the wheel and “dah, nah, oh no, you must pay full fare coach today – bummer!”

    Even better – I think airlines should charge you when you LEAVE the plane – just like restaurants. Don’t like the service or the flight, don’t pay. Lose your luggage, refuse to pay until they find it for you. Keep you stranded for hours? Never happen again.

    Make the flight attendants and gate agents work for tips. That’d change their attitude real fast. Or, put em on commission and make them sell stuff. At least you’d see them in the cabin then. Sometimes I have crazy ideas.

    There is the other end as well: “folks, bad news, we have to ditch, but, we have these nice life vests and even a life raft. The bidding for the life vests starts at $100. Shark repellent is extra, as is drinking water and access to the life raft. We have a few minutes for everyone to consider their maximum bids.

  • http://www.SanMateoRealEstateNews.com Lenore Wilkas

    As a grandmother I shudder to think what the liability will be should a disaster happen and a young child has been separated from its parents and dies. What legal department in their right mind would place that kind of liability into operation?

    If that’s what SWA finally does then it will give me even more reason to avoid them. Perhaps that’s really what they’re trying to do? Get rid of families flying their planes all together?

    As for Ryan Air, I find that story amazing. The Europeans are opening themselves up to the same kind of law suit. Wait until we read that headline worldwide: Airline Crashes. 2 children killed due to being separated from parents as passengers scrambling out of plane trample the children. That’s a law suit waiting to happen and if, god forbid it does, the family effected should end up owning the stupid airline.

  • Mike

    I don’t have kids and I no longer fly WN, but I think this could be trouble. My friends with kids say they don’t get to the airport super early because the kids get bored.

    Of course, they could check in online and get a good boarding priority, so maybe there is no good excuse.

  • Jasper

    The problem with complaints about Ryanair that I have is that they really told you so. Anybody should know by now that the only reason why Ryanair is so ridiculously cheap is that they cut every cost anywhere they can. They sell tickets for 99 cents, which is less that you pay for ANY way you can get to the airport (except if you can walk).

    But they do tell you upfront. They are not the low fare airline (like Southwest). They are the NO FRILLS airline. They move you from A to B. You get nothing else. No reimbursement (other than required by the EU), no food, no seating, no colored documents, no hotel, no thing. That’s the deal. You get the cheapest seat, on Europe’s most on-time airline. They bully everybody they needs to deal with (including customers) to be the cheapest. If you don’t like that, pay (way) more for a seat on another airline.

    Lastly, I think it’s way more objectionable that other airlines are dropping seating too. Try to get a seat assignment on a shuttle flight between DC, NY and Boston, for instance. No way.

  • Tom (of Madison)

    Wow… after reading these gripes I am SO happy that I take Amtrak whenever possible (and I even try to stretch that as much as I can).

    My worst Amtrak experience doesn’t come very close to some of these whines.

    Plus my window views were generally fantastic (e.g., the 2000′ bridge over the American River ranks high) and the people I’ve met and dined with on board were genuinely nice and usually interesting.

    Fly high all you want, I’m riding the rails happy.

  • Steve B.

    What Mr. Puller seem to have failed to realize in looking back at the Ryanair indecent is that HE made a conscious decision to fly on Ryanair. In my opinion (and it is only that), any parent who risks non-reserved seating when traveling with small children is displaying a disturbing level of irresponsibility. The children have no say in the matter – the so-called grown-ups should have budgeted to be able to pay for reserved seating on SAS or another carrier (maybe by giving up a fee caramel macchiattos or some iTunes downloads) or they should not have made the trip at all.

  • W

    Why are kids allowed on the plane in the first place? Have parents heard of minivan? Having kids is a decision you made knowing the things and freedom of choices you would have given up. You should never be guaranteed priority boarding just because you have kids, without paying for it. There have been times after I boarded the plane, I wanted to deplane and pick another flight because of crying kids. Southwest is doing the right thing, I am glad finally the management decided to think for the other passengers. Hopefully, this new policy will make parents think twice about bringing their kids onboard.

  • Buck

    My sister told me this story: she was flying with my nephew, who was under 5 years old. Not being seated together was a big concern. When she boarded the plane, she made sure he was holding a big ice cream cone. They were quickly seated, together.

  • Continuum

    I, too, am extremely tired of overly proud parents marching ahead of everyone else because of their beloved offspring.

    Let them arrive early and get their desired boarding.

    Too many times have I been subjected to screaming kids, kicking kids, and the ever popular child’s game of lowering then raising the tray table.

    As to the lady who no longer flies Southwest with her children. I say “Thank God”. That’s one less rug rat to ruin the flight.

  • Jack

    All I can think of is how I wish I could pack all of you pompous jerks onto a flight and then I would rip my son’s water bottle away from him and tease him with it. Then pop some earplugs into my ears and let him go off! ;-)
    Of course, my son is watched by his parents while on a flight so that he does not bother the other passengers. But, really no need for all of you to be jerks about this. I fly weekly and don’t want a screaming kid beside me anymore than a really fat person or people who pull their stinky shoes off on the plane(!!), or people that never shut up, or those creeps who put their seats all the way back the whole flight.
    I would rank the kids somewhere in the middle of flight annoyances. Now, I’m all for the flights where I’m abused by being forced to sit in the middle of a bunch of attractive women with skimpy outfits. No! Please don’t throw me in the briar patch!! ;-)
    Bottom line, kids are allowed to fly so be a jerk if you want, and force a family to sit apart. I would probably like that, just for the peace and quiet.

  • Vicki

    I frequently travel with my two children, ages 4 and 1. I always buy seats for both of them. No, I do not believe that the entire traveling world should bend over backwards because of me and my kids. But would it kill you to just be nice to a lady who is traveling with her kids? Remember, not all kids are nightmares.

    I make every effort to check in early and get to the airport early. However, it is not always possible to get there first off ahead of everybody else–kids or not. Traffic, issues with parking, whatever, will at some point inevitably delay me from getting to the airport 90min or more ahead of time. (No, sometimes on my return flight I don’t have access to the internet to check in). It is important that we sit together, partly for their safety but it also allows me to control my kids so they don’t bug others. I take GREAT pains to keep them occupied so as not to offend others. We also routinely select seats near the back of the plane.

    Part of the importance of boarding first is not just getting seats together, but the extra time it takes to schlep that car seat and 2 kids down the aisle. So when I have that A pass and still hold up everyone because I’ve got to get the FAA required seat down the aisle and installed, I’m sure there will be complaints. It is not my fault. So, for that reason alone, I won’t be flying SWA again.

    For those who don’t like the fact that parents are forced to change diapers in the seat–please write to your favorite airline and have them spend the $50 or so it costs to install a changing table in the bathroom. I’d much rather do it there.

  • Pat K

    A few thoughts, I’m surprised none of you have ever had the experience of a legacy airline changing your seats because of an equipment change. This means that although you may have seat assignments all in a row for your family, you are now dispersed all over the plane with no further recourse than pleading at the gate to put you back together as you once were.
    Although now adults, my children started flying at an early age, and they were better travelers than some of the adults I’ve been lucky enough to sit with. Not all children are brats just as all adults are not wonderful seat companions. There have been times I would have welcomed a kid versus a guy who smelled like an overripe clove of garlic or the woman who got the window seat but has to leave it regularly for god-knows-what reason. These are situations where the old IPOD or reading or sleeping trick just isn’t much help.
    I do have motherly reservations about separating families, especially with small children. If this becomes the norm, just how long do you think it will be before some airline gets its pants sued off over a possible child abuse suit? Not a pretty thought, but that is bound to happen when an airline says a child must sit next to an unknown stranger for any period of time. Much better I think is the idea of a family area, just like we used to have smoking areas on a plane. You only sit there if you fit the profile or you are late getting a seat assignment, then its your problem.

  • Doug

    I’ve been on both sides of this debate. A few years back I was checking in for a flight on Northwest in MSP and noted that I was sitting on the opposite end of the plane from my 2 year-old son. When I approached the ticket agent to point this out, she curtly told me to shove off. I shrugged and muttered that when he started screaming on the 30-passenger plane because he couldn’t find his dad, the stewardess would have to deal with it. The gate agent yelled back at me, “He’ll be fine!”

    I have been travelling, both by myself and with other adults, and willingly have given up my seats to allow kids to sit with their parents. It is in the best interest of ALL of the passengers on the plane to ensure young children sit with their parents.

    Having said that, yes, there are parents who don’t prepare their kids for air travel. I once had a flight on EasyJet from London to Naples where a woman sitting front of us failed to bring any kind of entertainment for her child, who screamed then entire flight. I’ve seen people not bring diapers, formula, etc. These people are just bad parents… they probably should have been forcibly sterilized rather than allowed to have kids. The fact that these people bring these children on an airplane only amplifies the numerous behavior issues that exist in that household.

    My children are now 6 and 3, and in three weeks we fly to San Diego out of MSP. We are very strict with our kids on the plane, demanding that they respect others around them, and have always been complimented by fellow passengers for their behavior. We feel no need to pre-board (it’s senseless anyway… if you’re going to trap a small child in a claustrophobic cabin for 2 hours, why would you ever want to extend that by 15 minutes?!?!). I would fathom that a majority of travelling families share our sentiment towards our fellow passengers.

    I don’t think banning all kids from planes is a fair solution. I’m not sure clumping them into a “family” section is wise either… if you’ve ever been inside a day care, you would understand why. I think it would be fair for airlines to blacklist familes whose kids have misbehaved on prior flights. I have no problem with airlines holding parents accountable for their kids’ behavior, and if they can’t be controlled, don’t allow them on for 3-4 years (when the kid is older). As a business, the airline has the right to make sure all of its customers have a pleasant experience, and that should include denying access to customers who make things unpleasant for other customers. But it’s unfair to simply deny boarding to all kids when those of us who care work very hard to not make life miserable for our fellow passengers.

  • jo

    i think this is amazing…the bottom line is, most of these kids are paying customers…they might be younger than you…but, they still pay….and i agree, some are badly out of control…but, most are fine…i travel with my family including 3 grandchildren…we pay for business class on long flights…my children work hard the whole flight to keep these kids entertained…i have also been on many flights where everyone was split up…how can a 2 year old realistically take care of himself for even 30 minutes? that is unreal…just wait until they spill something on you…i have been on many flights where the person next to me is leaning way over into my space…the person in front leans back basically onto my lap…and that’s ok? maybe we should all just try to get along, help each other…and watch what we all are doing…

  • Calirodan

    All of these comments made me wonder what the world is coming to. Why wouldn’t a person who got seated next to a 3 year old OFFER to change seats with the parent so that the parent could sit with the child? For me that would be a no-brainer. As other posters have noted, doing so is in everyone’s best interest. I know it’s probably hard to travel with kids, and I try to cut parents a little bit of slack.

    As a single person, I also agree that parents shouldn’t assume that they are entitled to priority everything, just because they have kids. I’ve seen my share of high-maintenance parents who insist that they get seated first, in the front of the plane, that their kids get space to run around, that the stewardesses bring them extra stuff, etc. They chose to travel with kids, and they need to take responsibility for bringing what their children need.

    Misbehaving children seems to me to be a different subject than seating families together. I’ve seen nice families with well-behaved children, and then . . . others. Parents — we single people understand that you can’t always keep your child from screaming when the airplane starts to descend and your child’s ears hurt. And you can’t control your child’s every movement, so the person in front might have their seat get bumped a few times. But if your child is constantly kicking the seat, pulling hair, making an undue amount of noise, or in other ways making life miserable for other passengers, remember that you should have brought incentives for your child to control his/her behavior (special toys, treats, etc.). If all else fails, why not tell a child who is practicing his/her soccer kick on the seat in front that sitting IN the seat is a privilege — if they can’t handle that there’s always Mom or Dad’s lap or the floor until they can pull themselves together. I also agree that airlines should be more proactive about potentially “alienating” the most annoying customers (kids or adults) and blackballing them if there is a history of problems. It will encourage the rest of us to fly more often.

    But I have to wonder where common decency went — parents who EXPECTED to be responsible for their children and EXPECTED their children to behave well, and other passengers who EXPECTED to help parents do that.

  • RJ

    As a former flight attendant and a parent of two boys (5 and 10) I am just thrilled with this new policy. Now I have NO reason to sit with my boys. Yup, you people who logged in at midnight to get your A pass and have gotten the aisle and window seat…I’m SURE that you won’t mind my 5 year old sitting right between you. Better watch out though, he’s kind of klutzy with his drinks – he prefers red juice – and tends to spill them. He is also good at forgetting he has a marker in his hand when he grabs your arm (might want to make a note to yourself NOT to wear your long sleeved white dress shirt sir!). The 10 year old is REALLY chatty and hyper….you’ll get to hear all about video games for the entire flight. And he doesn’t share armrests very well.

    But that’s okay…due to SWA’s new policy…I’ll be 10 rows back blissfully drinking a beer and reading a magazine uninterrupted! Wow, its been years since I got to enjoy some quiet time…and who knew!….now I get to do it on an airline while someone else flies with my kids! Score!

  • Stephanie

    I’ve noticed that on all the posts no one has offered the perspective of that separated child. Perhaps no one else has had this experience. I can tell you from personal experience that not only is it upsetting to the parents, it is truly horrifying for the small child. I was on a flight to Florida with my grandmother when I was five, and the airline messed up our tickets and had us sitting on opposite ends of the plane. I was horrified at the idea of sitting next to a stranger for two hours. I was so scared I was refusing to get on the plane and causing a scene in the terminal, which I know many of you complain about. Finally my grandma calmed me down and we boarded the plane at last, the very last of the passengers to do so, and no we did not hold up the plane, she told them if we were not on board by the time they were going to leave that it was ok if they left without us. The whole plane got to see the scared little girl walk all the way to the back of the plane to her seat while her grandmother tried to talk the flight attendant into helping her. Thankfully the flight attendant was a mother herself and felt horrible for the situation, she got a very nice college student to switch places with my grandma and we were able to sit together. She even brought back some of the dessert that was being served in first class. It’s been twenty years since that incident and yet it is the only thing I remember of that particular trip to Florida. Please forgive this very long reply, I felt that perhaps the perspective of a child separated from their family was needed.

  • mel

    I recently flew on a flight with my wife and 2 children aged 3 and 5. We couldn’t really have checked in on-line as we were flying back from our holiday. We were however first in the check-in line but we were all separated.
    My wife luckily had a seat open next to her – the only free seat on the entire plan – so the 5 year old who was the closest moved over and sat next to her. The woman next to the window wasn’t prepared to move. Nobody else would either. My 3 year old was scared and very close to crying. I (being somewhat mischievous) asked my wife to change seats with the 3 year old – which put the 2 boys together. I knew that the boys would be happy being close to each other. I gave them sweets, a kit-kat each and a sugary drink. They spent the flight fighting, shouting, jumping up and down on the seats and generally raising havoc. The woman next to the window really wanted to sleet – fat chance. She spent most of the time avoiding the sugary drinks spilling on her. I, however, sat drinking a beer and was actually able to enjoy reading my magazine – occasionally looking over at the boys and giggling.

  • Ellen

    My children are grown now but my older one has always been a very, very good traveler. One time, approximately 17 years ago, I was flying to St. Louis alone with a six month old and a three year old. We had assigned seats but the plane changed and the three year old and I were separated. I settled her into her seat between two businessmen. I handed her her backpack, reminded her where her crayons, books and snacks were, and told her that I was sure one of the two nice men (neither of which had been willing to move) would be happy to help her if she had any problems and she should just ask them. They looked horrified and asked if I really was leaving her there. “I have no choice,” I told them sadly. “But I’m sure she’ll be very little trouble.” I started walking to my seat in the back and loudly asked the flight attendant to keep an eye on her. “She’s really not much trouble but her fine motor skills are poor and she may spill her drink if someone does not help her put it in her cup,” I explained.

    One of the men suddenly decided to move…..

  • Ms M

    Why should families get priority? Especially those with screaming children. When I was a kid (i’m 35 now), we traveled by car until we were old enough to control ourselves to travel by air. I hate all of the families taking young, unbehaved kids to places that they shouldn’t. I’m glad WN is making fat people by 2 seats and making families board in the middle of the process. Now if they’ll do something about all of the wheelchairs…

  • trav

    What’s Southwest going to do if some weirdo pervs on the 8 year old little girl sitting by herself while mom is 10 isles up.

  • jennifer

    Southwest bent over backwards on the last flight I was on. It was truly the flight from hell. I was on a business trip. I missed half hour of a business reception so I could be online precisely at 7:20 to get my “A” boarding pass. I got to the airport at least 2 hours early. I got on the plane and was delighted to get the window seat I wanted. Even better the middle seat on my row was empty. The plane was boarded and it was now 7:18 (I checked my watch because I thought I just entered Wonderland).

    A flight attendant came down and stated that a family of five was boarding and we all had to change seats to accommodate these people. These people who should have been denied boarding for being late. It was now past departure time. The man in my row moved to a middle seat in the aisle in front leaving a couple of empty seats. A woman “of size” (read two seats passenger) came down with three kids under 8 and a man, again of size. The 8 year old was carrying the 3 1/2 foot tall lap child. If this child was under 2, I’ll eat my hat. I said absolutely no way was this kid sitting next to me. I am still fuming that I did not get my seating choice. I moved to another aisle on the other side of the plane. Then the smell started. The woman rips off the “lap child’s” pants and diaper right at the seat with the kid standing up for all to see with the dirty diaper. I thought for the first time, I would need to use the air sickness bag. Every 15 minutes, a flight attendant sprayed Lysol because of the smell.

    There is much worse to this story, I kid you not. I want my 8 hours back.

  • liz

    One of the reasons for this policy (I’m guessing) is some overly aggressive parents with kids, trying to push their way on during pre-boarding I’ve seen families try to board between wheelchairs (when told to wait by the Gate agent) I’ve seen hyper active kids running down the gateway knocking into disabled old ladies. For a lot of kids it seems like the goal is to get to the plane first, and the parents, struggling with the weight of their bags, the kids bags, car seats, etc. don’t have a lot of control over them.

    As a disabled person who needs time getting to my seat and my things stowed, I don’t use a wheel chair but I also can’t stand up for more than 15 minutes a day, pre-boarding is a must. When I heard SW was going to do this, I was incredibly grateful, let the families board first with the A group or whatever, but mixing poorly controlled children with the disabled is not a good idea.

    And, yes, if you have well behaved children and control them, I am sorry you have to suffer for the actions of a few, but frankly, like the time I was flying home 3 weeks after back surgery, very easily injured people like the elderly with frail bones and rambunctious out of control children DON’T mix.

    (A special thanks to the mother on my home from surgery flight, who not only made sure she, not her kids, sat behind me when I told her that I’d had surgery and asked her to make sure her kids didn’t kick the seat, BUT actually DID manage to keep them from kicking any seats in my row, despite the fact that she had to warn them repeatedly throughout the flight.

    And a second thanks to the parents who, when they went to sit down, and I told them of my surgery and the no kicking request realized the limits to the amount of control over their children and chose to sit elsewhere.)

  • louise

    SWA family boarding policy rarely separates parents from small children. If there are a lot of thru passengers when the plane arrives at the gate, the agent taking your boarding pass will let the flight attendants know approximately how many families. Do they guarantee ALL family members can sit together? No, just that at least one parent can be seated with the children. Sure sometimes, families arrive late and a request is made for someone to change seats. Usually a free drink is offered. Sometimes the families are late because of their poor planning or maybe they are standby passengers or their connecting flight arrived late. However, those cases are few…but generage the most complaints. We do see a lot of preboards who try to take advantage such as one wheelchair but 6 adult or teenage family members wanting to board with. The policy – if all would adhere – is one preboard qualified may take one companion to assist with carryons. Same with families…Just the parents after the A group is on. That doesn’t include the grandparents, cousins, and neighbors. Because the policy was abused so much (and believe me….those extra unqualified people do the most and loudest complaining!) which is why the new boarding went into affect. Plus selling the Business Select was a way to generage new revenue which all airlines need! So families, arrive on time. Let unqualified family members and friends board in their own group. When families preboarded, the front rows were taken, they took longer to collapse strollers, they clogged up the front of the plane so boarding would come to a stop while Mom and Dad would discuss who would hold which baby and who would strap in the car seats. Plus there really isn’t any under seat storage up front so all the front bin spaces would be taken which actually were behind the front seats…another slow down. Then they would be the first off the plane..again after holding up the other passengers who were in a hurry. Because they were gathering all the bottles, sippy cups, diaper bags, etc. Then the families would be on the jetbridge saying “Where’s my stroller and carseat?” Just because the passenger aircraft door is open, doesn’t mean the bins under the plane are open. The plane is still being connected to ground power, ground air, tow bar connected, belt loaders being moved into position with limited personnel below. Then the jetway was crowded with families and children getting knocked over by passengers anxious to get out of there. Now with family boarding and families being seated toward the rear of the plane, boarding goes faster because the stack-up with families is in the back so other passengers just fill in the front seats rather than waiting to get by all the families. AND strollers are more likely to be set up or least waiting for the families when they get out. Consideration works both ways. Families need to be more considerate to other passengers and airline workers, rather than demanding front seats and preboarding. SWA will work with the families to ensure a parent is sitting with the children. Best yet, check in online as soon as possible with 24 hours and get an A boarding pass.

  • Z Smith

    I had a similar experience with Ryanair, even though I was told at check-in that we were entiled to priority boarding with my three-year-old. We did manage to get on the transfer bus amongst the first passengers, but then we had to wait what seemed like half an hour to get going and we were still the last ones to get on the plane. When I say last I mean LAST. Of course, by then all the seats had been taken, so they had to rearrange some of the other passengers. What did they expect? I can’t possibly leave a three-year-old all by himself! By the way, there were two other families with babies just in front of us, who were in the same situation. Wouldn’t it have been easier for everybody to just let the young families get on the plane first??? I won’t fly with Ryanair again if I can help it!

  • AC

    If you have kids and want to sit with them, buy priority boarding. There – that wasn’t hard, was it?

  • casualsuede

    What a bunch of whiners.

    I have no kids and I fly 40K miles a year and once in a long while take SouthWest.

    I have NO problems with parents and kids under 5 boarding. I find those whiners who moan and complain that toddlers getting better service than me to be the most immature people in the world. Imagine yourself comparing yourself to a little kid.

    Shame on you people!

  • Lisa

    I LOVE that Southwest no longer pre-boards families. Being a woman who has experienced heart-wrenching infertility, there’s no reason at all that I should be penalized for not being able to have children and people who squeeze out a few kids get to board before me. Of course, you selfish parents would never even THINK about a person in a situation like mine, right? You should be ashamed of yourselves–There are a lot of other people in the world who follow the rules and by no fault of their own are childless and shouldn’t have to wait for YOU.

  • James

    The common theme in all of this is that the plane was already to full to accomodate your brood! Meaning that you, as the RESPONSIBLE ADULT that you should be, did not follow advice ALREADY provided to you by the airline, that you should show up 90 minutes to 2 hours PRIOR to you flight like every other traveler!

    What makes it even less excusable is that you can now check in ONLINE 24 hours in advance!.

    What makes it even LESS excusable than THAT is that SWA now offers EARLY BIRD check in which they will check you in themselves. YOU DON’T HAVE TO LIFT A FINGER!! It cost 10 bucks ahead, , but I can guarantee that your fare will still be less than the alternative, and you don’t have to do a damn thing to check in early. yet this issue still keeps happening on my flights.

    People say than chivalry is dead should maybe try to hold themselves accountable for something, for a change.

  • Tanya

    I have been flying most of my life. And as a child, knew to behave, with or without a parent sitting by me. I was never traumatized by not getting to sit with a parent.
    Now as an adult, I applaud SW’s decision on the new boarding. It is wonderful. I cannot tell you how many times I was at the airport early to get a good boarding pass and not 10 minutes before the flight was to leave, multiple families would stroll up to the gate and all 16 of the family members and one child would still get to board before the rest of us. Parents with children still get somewhat of priority boarding, they board after the business select, now priority, and A board. I also see the SW agent’s adhering to the rule that 1 parent gets to board with the child/children.
    To those who say that a lawsuit will eventually occur, maybe you are right. I have a much simpler suggestion. Either print out your ticket early, pay for priorty, or if there really are no seats together and you have to sit with your child, then get off the plane and take a later flight. It is always the parent’s choice whether to sit with the child or not. You know the rules, follow them.
    Also, to all the parents out there, yes things happen. Traffic (the rest of us plan for this btw), kids make things go slower (again, the whole planning thing . . .), things do happen, I realize this. But please realize this, I will not, ever, under any circumstances on a full flight give up my window or aisle seat (I am almost 6 feet tall, leg room imperative), for a middle seat, yes I was asked this before and one of the adults (there were 3) had an aisle seat that they were unwilling to give up. I will at all other times gladly switch seats with you so that you may sit by your child.
    To the person who deliberately let their children run amok. Shame on you for being a horrible, yes horrible parent. Your children should know better, as should you.
    To those that think children should not be allowed to fly at all, I am against this. Families live far apart from each other and it is nice to see them.
    Children can behave and will when they are taught properly. Yes, kids will be kids. They are not robots and should not be expected to act like robots, so unless you are in one of the (less so nowadays) rare occurances where the parent is glaring at you for daring to suggest their little darling stop kicking the seat, and the flight attendant will do nothing as well, get over it. You too were once a child and did not always behave perfectly.
    To the parents who think they should get to sit back and relax while little jr annoys others. Think again. It is your responsibility to control your child. It was your choice to have the child, not mine, or the flight attendant’s or anyone else on board that plane. It was also your choice to fly. There are other means of transportation available. If your child is misbehaving, say something, or else I will and no, it is not always just a kid being a kid. Then, I will and have gotten the flight attendant involved (this normally results in free drinks as I have been more than patient up to this point). Generally, the FA is extremely happy that another customer finally complained so that they can do something about it. Yes, sometimes adults are just as bad (I have sat next to a few, Las Vegas bound or returning anyone?) I always try to say thank you to the child and the parent when they are well behaved. I always try to say thank you to the mom/dad who tirelessly tries to get the screaming baby to stop crying. I always find that the child and parents appreciate the acknowledgment that they were good!
    Maybe we shoule all try to be a bit more patient and understanding as a whole. There are good and bad adults and there are kids that will behave and kids that won’t. But please do not think that your rights should in any way infringe on mine and I will give you the same courtesey.

  • balmsed

    Okay, I really think all the people bashing kids need to stop and think for a minute – THINK!!!! You are complaining that parents don’t control their kids on flights….okay, how much controlling do you think a parent can do when they are sitting 10 rows back from their 5 or 6 year old?????? Is it in your best interest to have them sit next to you unattended??? Or, would you rather have a parent nearby to control them??? – USE YOUR BRAINS!! You greatest argument is that us parents don’t limit our kids behavior on flights…..so let’s move the parents as far away from them as possible. Okay – yeah, makes total sense to me!
    Not all of us show up late because we have some sense of entitlement. Broaden your horizons a little….Some of us are joining your flight from a late-arriving connection. So, unless I parachute out the door, I have no control over when I arrive on “your” plane. That’s not my fault. Yes, whenever possible I pay the $10 upgrade FOR EACH SEGMENT….but it doesn’t exactly do me a bit of good if my connection gets me there after everyone has boarded!
    Also, these kids are PAYING customers – like most everyone else. Last time I looked, I was paying top dollar for not one, but two, three or even four seats. They deserve a pleasant flying experience just like the rest of you. “Stick to the minivans???” Wow, how ’bout dragging yourself out of “gumdrop land” for a moment and thinking about how idiotic that statement really is. Why not hitch up the team and take the wagon cross country. Lord knows we all have weeks and weeks to get somewhere…
    AND, only one other person here had the compassion enough to address just how scared a 5 or 6 year old may be sitting all by themselves – what the he11 is wrong with you people?!?!? Are you that heartless??? Some of these kids have never flown before in their lives! And keep in mind, you don’t know why they are flying – not every family is on a plane to go on holiday and make your lives miserable along the way. Sometimes they are flying because of family emergencies or family deaths. Did you ever think of that??? No, because you’re all too busy yapping on your cell phones after the attendants tell you to turn them off – putting everyone else at risk. But, you know what??? One thing’s for certain – I’ll be sure and remember this forum the next time one of you self-centered, fat, fowl smelling, kid-hating twits reclines your seat into my lap – you can bet, it won’t be my kid kicking you!

  • Raines

    I don’t care where we end up sitting as long as we can stay together.  If we have to go to the back of the plane, fine with me.  But I’ll be standing there staring down the rude people that want to try to avoid anyone sitting next to them.  I’ll tell my 5 year old to sit next to them and be as annoying as he can.

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