Southwest Airlines to Families: No More Early Boarding

Travel Blog  •  Jim Benning  •  09.19.07 | 4:43 PM ET

imageBeginning Oct. 2, people traveling with small children will no longer be allowed to pre-board Southwest Airlines flights. It’s all in the name of fairness, the airline says. Reports the Los Angeles Times: “Children under 5, and those traveling with them, won’t be stripped entirely of privilege. If they and their entourage don’t get boarding passes in time to be part of group A, they’ll be allowed to board right after that group, before B and C.” The airline had received complaints about the policy from other travelers. In other news, the airline has apparently reconsidered its pre-flight lecture policy for travelers in short skirts, too.

Related on World Hum:
* AP Editor: Kids on Planes More Controversial Than Hillary Clinton
* When Are Children Old Enough to Travel Abroad?
* Southwest Airlines Veers Into Fashion Controversy—Again

Photo by Ack Ook via Flickr, (Creative Commons).



6 Comments for Southwest Airlines to Families: No More Early Boarding

Eva Holland 09.19.07 | 6:33 PM ET

I don’t cheer for Phil McGraw all that often, but here goes: Way to go, Dr. Phil!

mary scull 09.20.07 | 10:26 PM ET

i agree with Southwest, i have watched the preboarding as 25 closest relatives all piled in with the grandchild,the priviledge had been abused and so it goes!!!!

lucia 09.21.07 | 9:41 AM ET

i agree with Southwest, i have watched the preboarding as 25 closest relatives all piled in with the grandchild,the priviledge had been abused and so it goes!!!!

oh please grow up girl!! why in the world would bother you to let kids and their parents board the plane early? for goodness sake the darn thing wont take off wiothout you i promise!  try thinking of someone ealse besides yourself for once! i travel quite frequentely and have never in all my life seeing 25 or more relatives try to bord the plane early as well,stop exagerating and put the children before yourself,and oh let me guess… you dont have any kids right?

Isabel 09.21.07 | 11:54 AM ET

I must admit one thing, this policy is fine. However, personally speaking I prefer the kids go first; because there are so many inmature adults out there. I’ve seen with my own eyes, push the kids aside, and keeps going, not a care in the world. If there would be caring enough to not push or shove just to get on a plane that would make the process of boarding a plane alot smoother. They should just keep the darn policy and move on to more important matters. Such as; is the plane working right????

Meg 09.23.07 | 9:45 PM ET

Before you all jump on the bandwagon, remember that because I am no longer allowed to pre-board with my 2 year old, I will now be thwacking you in the head with my bags as I attempt to strap my carseat in while doing my best to keep my 2 year old from dancing on your lap.  :)

Bet you wished I pre-boarded…

Shaun Dakin 10.15.07 | 12:17 AM ET

Hi,

The fact that families are no longer allowed to board early, but must wait until the A group has boarded is an outrage. 

As a 20 year SW fanatic, I’m dumbfounded by the dumbness of the policy change.

I’m a parent.  I don’t like to travel with children, but when I do I want to have the stress level minimal.  I also like to save money.

With the new policy, the stress levels that are already high traveling with a baby are now ratcheted up a notch or two.

As a result, several parents have formed a website to change this part of the policy and started an online petition.

http://www.StopSouthwestPreboard.com

Regards,

Shaun Dakin

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