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Southwest Airlines Sticks With Open Seating

New system assigns passengers to a boarding group

By Mark Huffman
ConsumerAffairs.com

September 19, 2007

“Our open seating has served us exceptionally well throughout our 36-year history, and, after much research, deliberation, careful evaluation, and significant feedback from our employees and customers, we've decided that it is here to stay,” said Gary Kelly, Southwest Airlines' Chief Executive Officer.

“When we began our extensive exploration into the way our Customers board the aircraft, we set out to accomplish two things: improve the Customer Experience and increase Customer productivity. The new boarding delivers on both accounts and complements our legendary open seating.”

However, the airline said it does plan to make changes to its boarding, saying goodbye to the perceived "cattle call" and eliminating the need for customers to “camp-out” in their boarding line at the gate.

“The boarding transformation will enhance customers' Southwest experience, while maintaining the carrier's core values and maverick character,” Southwest said in a statement.

Beginning in early November, customers will be assigned a letter and a number on their Southwest boarding pass when they check in for a flight. This unique combination, representing the customers' reserved spot in their boarding group-boarding positions, are separated into groups of five.

When a customer's boarding group is called, they simply find their designated place in line to board the aircraft.

The A group will queue first in two lines: A1-30 on one side of marked columns and A31-60 on the other side, followed by two groups of B, and then the remaining Cs.

“After testing assigned seats in San Diego last summer, we quickly learned that the majority of our customers did not want us to abandon our open seating but they did challenge us to enhance the way we board our aircraft,” Kelly said.

The airline began experimenting with several boarding processes last year at San Diego International Airport. Based on encouraging results, it says a new boarding option emerged using frontline Southwest employees and customer feedback.

Next, Southwest began constructing technology for a 2007 implementation in response to the initial San Diego results. In August 2007, the airline performed a “dress rehearsal” at San Antonio International Airport to confirm the carrier's preliminary findings and fine tune the process.

“Feedback from our San Antonio Customers and Employees has been overwhelmingly positive,” Kelly said. "One of our primary goals with the new boarding is to give Customers back what they value most -- time. All of our research proves that this new way to board does just that."

The carrier plans to introduce the new boarding at every airport it serves by early November 2007. Over time, Southwest also plans to modify its gates with columns and signage that reflects the new boarding groups.

Southwest Airlines announced a plan to enhance its product in late June 2007. Today's announcement is the first step in a laundry list of items the carrier will introduce over the next several months.

The company said the new style of boarding opens the door to future enhancements, allowing for product customization and additional incentives for the business and leisure traveler.

Southwest Airlines, at one time a regional discount carrier, has become one of the nation’s largest airlines, experiencing rapid growth as many “legacy” carriers struggled with financial issues, including bankruptcy.

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