Southwest Airlines (1971-2025): Customers Mourn the End of Free Bags and Open Seating – WSJ:
The airline didn’t have to blow up its carefully cultivated identity practically overnight. Southwest is Southwest because it’s different and touted that at every single turn. At Chicago’s Midway International Airport yesterday, banners everywhere still proclaimed its uniqueness. “No ketchup on our dogs. No fees on our flights.’’
Soon, there will be nothing differentiating it from American, Delta, United, Alaska or JetBlue.
Heck, some of those other airlines have more to offer travelers in many cases: faster and even free Wi-Fi, seat-back screens, power outlets at every seat and more. Before its about-face on bags, Southwest had repeatedly said that customer defections would trump any gain in bag-fee revenue if it abandoned the policy. With its bag advantage gone, Southwest fliers are suddenly free agents.
By and large, I was not a Southwest traveller. Like many people, I did not like their festival seating arrangement whereby passengers could grab any available seat as soon as they boarded. I want to know where I’m seated and I want to sit there.
On the other hand, I loved bags fly free. I think it was a core to their value proposition, and now they’re left competing on price. That is not a good place to be because it’s a race to the bottom, and now I fear that’s where Southwest is headed.