Looks like somebody better start looking for a new job. I’d can that agent immediately.
There is probably more to this. My guess is the guy was being an asshole.
Maybe someone had a “special” reason to separate the kids from their dad.
There are always too sides to these stories and I could believe either side in this story:
On the one hand, these flight attendants can be power-drunk Nazis at times and take any little slight or show of temper as a terrorist act.
On the other hand, some passengers can be real a-holes.
Who forced him to delete his tweet? And how did they do it?
The whole incident revolves around the exact words he used in the tweet and he can’t remember them? Sounds a bit suspicious.
“That does it! I’m going to tweet about this!” Some relative of Pajama Boy?
On a flight out of BAL three weeks ago I complained about Delta service in a tweet and they DM’d me immediately and asked how they could help...
I’ve seen stuff like this first hand before. Guy was complaining about the crappy service that the gate agent for Delta was providing.
Agent said she felt threatened and called security.
A 6 and a 9 year do not need special assistance to board a plane. His kids apparently did not have A tickets so he was trying (seemingly) to get his kids to board early.
Southwest boards the kids and families with special needs after the A group before the B group.
When did airline staff get so damned surly?
When I was at Disney World, I saw this emasculated dad trying to deal with his young daughter finally yell “if you don’t start behaving, I’m going to tell Tinker Bell!” This pathetic guy reminds me of this dad.
why is SWA paying someone to monitor tweets ?
how did they find or see his tweet?
is SWA monitoring the wifi?
“A list” just means you checked in early. Now it usually means you paid $20 each way for priority seating. My guess is he paid one upgrade, and thought he could bring the kids along for free. If they were younger, they would have boarded first anyway.
First, just like illegal immigrants, most gate agents know the “magic words” that will force the process to flow a certain way. It seems that she used those words to allow the pilot to assert his (proper) authority.
I fly enough that I have had a Companion Pass for years - I get to pick someone to fly for free with me (wife, child, complete stranger, etc). We each get separate boarding passes - I am usually A16 - A20, my companion has to check in at T-24 to get theirs, usually at the start of B.
Proper etiquette is that we board according to our numbers, or I step back to board with them. Mr. A-List here tried to slip one past the GA.
Children under 5 get the privilege of boarding early with family members. Once they turn 6 - messy. No more families walking the plank together. That is common across all airlines, with multiple exceptions.
Southwest does allow families to board after A60, so it is not as bad a situation as non-fliers expect.
If he flies enough to get A-List then he should be familiar with the rules, including the rules for family boarding.
For Southwest boarding there are a couple of rules. “Blue cards” board first, then Business Select A1-A15 (if any), then A-List Plus (me), then A-List, then Early Boarding, then the “A61” boarders, then family boarding, then the poor souls that were unable to check in at T-24 hours.
Once on the plane he should have just walked towards the back to get three seats together and “saved” seats for his kids, or just waited and boarded with them.
While in the hearing of the gate agent the rules are simple - “Yes Ma'am/Sir” and “Thank You!”. All else leads to issues, which passengers will usually lose, no matter how much they fly.
I suspect that the Jerk Factor was at work here.
I am always very polite to the gate agent.
What most people don’t realize is that flying in a commercial airliner is not the same as having dinner at a fancy restaurant. The airlines can kick you off the plane for almost any reason if they feel you are any sort of a threat. Best to sit down and shut up!
I will say this - air travel these days is absolutely, completely unpleasant, and often horrendous. Every flight is full, every gate is full, customers and agents are usually worn out and surly. In flying Delta, US Airways, and American multiple times within the last six months, I had a flight leave on time exactly once. I would not want to work in the airline industry. On the bright side, I made it to my destinations safely.
A long thread from very frequent Southwest fliers regarding this social media insult.
The comment at the end about Natalie Grant slamming a WN GA - and then getting sued for it - may bring some perspective.