I have found Southwest Airlines to have excellent customer service. And it pays off. In just a few years, Southwest has grown from a regional airline to become number four in the country. Why can’t the other airlines emulate Southwest?
I agree regarding your comments re Southwest Airlines.
Southwest Airlines is the ONLY major airline that did not declare bankruptcy in the post 9/11 era.
The other airlines do not want to emulate Southwest as that would be admitting they have been incompetent for decades.
I fly infrequently and it is usually to and from Florida via Southwest. I wouldn’t call them the best but in this era they are the least bad. If I could afford it, general aviation is the way I’d go.
I’ve flown Southwest twice. Both times I swore, never again. Unfortunately, my choices are limited, so my solution is to only fly to my own kids weddings.
[I have found Southwest Airlines to have excellent customer service.]
I have been a United passanger since the merger with Continental.
But a few years ago I decided to try Southwest for a cross-country trip.
WOW!!! What an amazing difference in service! Flight crew are actually HAPPY to be doing their job.
The best part of SWA is being able to choose your own seat.
I also like Southwest. I was on one where the stewardess went thru the safety procedure talk they do and had me rolling in the aisle. She did a satire of it that was great.
Alaska Airlines also has great customer service. It's the only airline I fly on as they have the best route structure in Alaska and on the west coast.
Southwest did the same thing to me that United did. A few years back I bought four round trip tickets from San Antonio to Las Vegas. Keep in mind that I paid for these tickets four months in advance. I was traveling with my son, daughter-in-law, and grandson.
Everything was okay until our return trip. The return was a one stopper and change of planes at Phoenix. I should have known something was wrong as I couldn’t get a boarding pass for one of my party when we departed Las Vegas. Sure enough I was bumped from my flight from Phoenix to San Antonio. Seems someone in Phoenix had bought a ticket to San Antonio and was able to secure a boarding pass before we checked in at Las Vegas. I was livid.
I paid four months in advance and was on a return trip with a group of four and was bumped by someone who purchased a ticket the day before the flight. I was extremely upset but never made a threatening gesture nor did I raise my voice. I told the Southwest employee that this was a ridiculous turn of events. She said “Sir! This is the way it is and if it’s unacceptable to you I’ll get an security officer and perhaps he can persuade you.” Well, I finally relented. I took a later flight while the rest of my party traveled on without me. I finally got home after midnight. I’ve had a jaundiced view of Southwest ever since, even though they did pay for a meal at Phoenix and they paid me over $300.00 for my trouble. That made it a bit more palatable but I still maintain that it was shabby treatment indeed.