What happened to Southwest Airlines?

Fodor's Travel ^ | 3.13.25 | Scott Laird

[tflabo]

The U.S. airline industry is an unforgiving, cynical business where success tends to be fragile and short-lived. Unless—until recently—you were Southwest Airlines.

The brand that started flying as a tiny intrastate airline in Texas in 1971 tended to buck industry trends for decades, with consistent profitability, stable workforce relations, and high marks for customer service and operational reliability.

[silent majority rising]

Herb Kelleher died and the worms ate his corpse.

[Ronaldus Magnus III]

Pretty soon this will be Southwest.

A man walks up to the airline ticket counter with two pieces of luggage to check. He politely requests that one suitcase go to Cleveland, and the other suitcase to Orlando. When the airline ticket agent states that they cannot do that, the customer states “why not, you did it last month!”

[SaveFerris]

Yeppers

[SaveFerris]

bean counters destroy everything

[stanne]

I flew first class on a major recently. It was what it was when we used to take trips with the family back in the day. Meal. Flatware. Service. Room.

[chajin]

The message of the 1954 movie Executive Suite was that handing a business to the bean counters is a formula for failure. The movie is 70 yo, and numerous businesses didn't learn the message.

[Codeflier]

Let me jump in and I’m ready to be attacked!

1. I hated their original seating model. The worst. I avoided them for many years for business travel because of it.

2. Their fares have been inflated by the bags fly free. Now there will be better deals for business travelers with a small carry-on

3. I found their old quirky flight attendant announcements very off putting for business traveling. Was fine for the occasional rubes flying, but I didn’t like it.

[sonova]

I’ve flown SW exclusively dozens ( or more ) times in the last 20 years.
Now after this ‘strategic takeover’ or whatever, and the loss of choice of seating, they’re going to be no better than any other crap airline.

[CodeToad]

DEI. Watched it happen.

[PAR35]

The GE model - enrich the execs and the lenders, leave the investors and employees holding the bag.

[linMcHlp]

bttt

[wally_bert]

We have a trip to Colorado Springs coming up at some point in a few weeks and even being in SC would rather drive. However logistics dictate flying. I haven’t flown in maybe 15 years at least. Nowhere to go.

There is so much of this country that I haven’t seen and have never been to west other a couple of days in a Burbank convention center.

Any recommendations for Colorado Springs?

[vespa300]

Have never flown Stinkwest Airlines. We fly American only and almost never have a problem. You pay for what you get and when traveling, I don’t need any surprises.

No smelly seats, no cattle call at the gate, board by group, ......American......and the best commercial ever from the 70s......watch:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gd4gAHmRJWo

[volare737]

Exactly. It’s not just the bean counters.

Southwest went “ALL IN” on DEI.

Just check out their flight crews in the front and back vs. what they were like under Herb many years ago. No comparison.

[TheThirdRuffian]

Southwest lost a huge lawsuit in SCOTUS and had to hire fatties and men and old women to be stewardesses.

Literally the issue was if “being female and reasonably attractive” was a legitimate job qualification.

The court said “no”.

Been downhill ever since.

[ChildOfThe60s]

Ditto.

I’m done with flying. It’s degrading. Which, IMO, is their goal. TSA has turned everyone into compliant, docile sheep. It is a corrupt, incompetent organization which has made no one safer.

[SamAdams76]

I remember the Peoplek Express from the 1980s.

Now that was very much a no-frills airline.

They did charge a bag fee but it was only $2 a bag at the time. You could buy beers on board for just a dollar. You could bring your own peanuts.

The stewardesses were very much "girl next door" in that they were not glamorous in any way but very much polite.

The pilots were entry level but they seemed to have at least some military experience and you did not feel unsafe with them flying the plane.

The people at the gate were exceptionally rude but what could you expect from a super cheap airline in which you could fly from Boston to Los Angeles for just $69?

They went bankrupt by the end of the 1980s and ended up getting absorbed by Continental, but they had only one major mishap, due to an improperly sealed milk carton, if I remember correctly.

[SomeCallMeTim]

Yes. I remember that too. At Hobby.

I think, they failed to invest on their computer systems for years. Then, they finally broke. at Christmas. That was the final breach of trust

[napscoordinator]

The bag charge doesn’t begin until may. You may be safe from the fees.

[Chickensoup]

The actress who plays the stewardess is lovely.

Nice peek into the past.