Southwest Airlines regulars have probably been there: Set an alarm and check in exactly 24 hours before your flight, only to find yourself relegated to Group C boarding, often known as short for “middle seat.”
Southwest is the only major US airline with an open seating policy. It assigns each passenger an exact boarding position, a letter between A and C and a number between 1 and 60, and allows them to choose any available seat once on board. That means boarding order at Southwest isn’t just about carry-on space; it could be the difference between an aisle seat in the exit row and the middle seat in the back row.
Twitter is full of not-so-humble boasts from travelers who got a coveted Group A boarding pass, as well as complaints from those who got stuck in Group C, including some who say they checked in the moment they could.
I just need you to know that for the first time in my life I was able to check in with Southwest Airlines exactly 24 hours before takeoff. In other news, I’m still in boarding group C. #southwest #airlines
— Nathan Nolan, MD MPH (@NNolanMD) November 13, 2019
Factors like whether you use the Southwest app to check in, being a frequent flyer member (other than an elite member), the size of your party and the purpose of the trip are not factored into boarding position assignments, he said. Laura Swift, a spokeswoman for Southwest. .
Still, getting into Group A isn’t just about when you check in: Boarding assignments at Southwest are determined by a combination of money, time, status and sheer chance.
“It’s surprisingly complicated,” said Brett Snyder, who runs the consumer air travel blog Cranky Flier, noting that some aspects of boarding assignments at Southwest remain a “black box” even to travel experts.
Here’s why checking in 24 hours before your flight might not get you the boarding position you want, and what you can do to secure a spot sooner.
The only way to guarantee an early boarding position is to pay. Purchasing or upgrading to a Business Select ticket, Southwest’s most expensive fare class, guarantees an A1-A15 boarding position.
If there are fewer than 15 Business Select passengers on the flight, the remaining spaces in group A1-A15 are sold 24 hours before the flight as upgraded boarding positions, starting at $30 per flight. Pricing varies based on the “popularity and duration of each flight segment,” according to Southwest’s website. While previously only available at the gate, in August the company added the option to purchase Upgraded Boarding at check-in on its app and website.
For frequent flyers with Rapid Rewards Priority or Rapid Rewards Performance Business credit cards, the airline will reimburse up to four upgraded boardings purchased with the cards per year.
Keep in mind, however, that being first to board doesn’t guarantee the best seat because Southwest operates direct flights, which means passengers from an earlier leg can still be on board and are allowed to change seats (after flight attendants take a head count).
“You may even have A1, and you may not be the first person on that plane,” Snyder said.
You can pay to register early
Even if you check in exactly 24 hours in advance, chances are you won’t be the first passenger assigned a boarding position. That’s because Southwest offers “EarlyBird” check-in, which automatically reserves a passenger’s boarding position 36 hours before departure for a fee. You’ll still need to check in for your boarding pass, but your boarding position, likely in group A, will already be secured.
Some travelers get EarlyBird check-in included with their purchase: those who pay an Anytime fare and elite members in Southwest’s frequent flyer program (Preferred A-List or A-List status), along with their companions. EarlyBird check-in can also be purchased for $15 to $25, depending on the flight.
Gary Leff, who runs the travel blog View From the Wing, recommends that if you’re traveling with other people, one person can purchase EarlyBird check-in and reserve seats for the rest of the group. Southwest does not have a policy against saving seats, although it can lead to conflicts between passengers.
We do not have a specific policy for or against reserving seats, as long as the boarding process is not delayed and other Customers are not inconvenienced. -Laughter
— Southwest Airlines (@SouthwestAir) September 4, 2022
Various categories of passengers can board at designated times, which generally guarantees a good seat. Passengers with disabilities can board early, while active-duty military personnel, elite members of Southwest’s frequent flyer program who don’t yet have EarlyBird check-in (if they booked their flight at the last minute, for example) and families with a child under 6 can board between groups A and B.
“If you have young children, it’s probably not worth buying EarlyBird because you really won’t have much trouble finding seats together,” Snyder said.
Seconds matter if you don’t want to pay
Beyond those groups, boarding positions become strictly first-come, first-served, right down to the second you check in.
“As far as we know, when you do a regular check-in, it’s strictly in the order that you click the button,” Snyder said. “It matters to the second, you just have to be ahead of everyone else.”
*checks in for flight exactly 24 hours before* Southwest: Boarding Area Z Group 100
– Moisés Parra (@moises_parra) February 11, 2021
Snyder said he doesn’t usually buy EarlyBird when traveling solo because he can usually secure a non-middle seat with regular check-in.
“If I check in at 24 hours, I probably won’t get anything above the low B area,” he said.
Although he recommends checking in as close to 24 hours as possible, Snyder said passengers who can check in closer to the flight may occasionally take the boarding spot of another passenger who canceled at the last minute.
“Sometimes you can slip in there and get a surprisingly good number that you don’t expect,” he said. “But there’s no way of knowing in advance, so always try to check in within 24 hours.”
Swift, the Southwest spokeswoman, said there are “several factors built into the boarding process” and the airline could not guarantee that a passenger would take the place of another who canceled.
Leff said there are websites that automate the check-in process at exactly 24 hours, but most of them have been shut down by the airline. Swift said Southwest “does not use third-party apps” and encouraged passengers to use the airline’s website or app to check in.
How to find the ‘golden seat’
So you’ve been assigned a coveted boarding position A, and you enter the plane with your choice of seats, which one should you choose?
I am the first to board this southwestern open seat flight (big bluster) WHAT IS THE SEAT MOVEMENT? I’M PANIC AND I MAY DROWN.
— Jason Gay (@jasongay) August 29, 2022
Leff said his top priority is securing an empty middle seat next to him, so he’ll often check with the gate agent before boarding to see if there are any empty seats.
If the plane isn’t full, he skips the empty aisle seats near the front that many passengers want and heads for an aisle seat about two-thirds of the way through the plane.
“Nobody is necessarily going to try to go all the way in search of a middle; if you get stuck in the middle, you’re probably taking it near the front,” Leff said.
However, on a full flight, all of the middle seats will be occupied, so Leff said he goes straight to the seat with “infinite legroom,” the window seat behind the exit row, to which he lacks a seat in front of him. Snyder called it the “golden seat” of Southwest.
Leff said the most important factor in securing your desired seat is getting to the gate 30 minutes before your flight.
“If you’re flying on another airline that has assigned seats and you’re not trying to fight for overhead bin space, it doesn’t matter when you board, as long as you’re there before they close the gate. ,” he said. “But Southwest turns that on its head: If your boarding number is A20, well, that doesn’t help you if they’re already boarding the C’s when you show up at the gate.”
correction
A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that Southwest Airlines assigns boarding positions with the letters A, B, and C and a number between 1 and 50. The number assignments range from 1 to 60. The article has been corrected.
Source: www.washingtonpost.com