Southwest Airlines used to be the quirky darling of the skies. You’d get two free checked bags, no change fees, and a boarding process that was either brilliantly efficient or complete chaos, depending on who you asked. But lately, things are changing.
There’s no shortage of coverage about the big shifts happening at Southwest. The once-untouchable free checked bag policy? Already gone for some new bookings. Seat assignments and extra legroom seats? Not officially for sale yet, but the new seats are starting to show up on planes. Right now, the vibe seems to be legacy airline energy, but still trying to keep that Southwest feel. It’s a strange path to follow.
Still, while everyone’s talking about the policies, there’s been far less chatter about the experience. Have people actually stopped flying Southwest? Has it become noticeably different in the air?
Well, we recently flew them for the first time in a while—and let’s just say the experience was… eye-opening. Maybe not definitive, but it raised some eyebrows.
More on that below.
We Checked In at T-24 and… Got Group A?!
If you’ve flown Southwest Airlines anytime in, say, the last decade, you probably know the T-24 check-in dance. It’s practically a rite of passage: you set an alarm for exactly 24 hours before your flight, tap nervously at your phone or laptop like you’re trying to win a radio contest, and hope—hope—you don’t end up with a boarding position which leaves you a middle seat between two strangers who brought tuna sandwiches onboard.
Back in the good old days, that T-24 hustle might’ve actually gotten you a decent spot. However, in recent years, it typically meant you were already behind the EarlyBird Check-In crowd, the Business Select travelers, the A-List elites, and anyone who had paid for Upgraded Boarding.
For most regular folks, T-24 check-in typically landed them somewhere in the B group, possibly even in the mid-to-late B range if they hesitated for more than a few seconds. Families or couples who didn’t shell out for EarlyBird or upgraded boarding were almost guaranteed to be split up or stuck near the back of the plane. Solo travelers might be able to squeeze into a window or aisle, but it was often a gamble.
Imagine our surprise when we checked in exactly 24 hours before our flight and received… Group A. Not just Group A, but A47.
No EarlyBird. No paid upgrade. No special elite status. Just a good ol’-fashioned punctual check-in, and voilà—we’re up front with the folks who usually shell out extra.
Even more telling? The option to upgrade to A1–A15 was still available until the plane boarded, and the price was just $25. That same offer last year would’ve been $40 to $45, and long gone within an hour.
So, What’s Going On?
There are a few possible explanations:
- Passenger drop-off? Maybe some loyalists have jumped ship after hearing about all the changes coming (fare class revamps, bag fees, assigned seating, etc.).
- EarlyBird fatigue? Travelers may be reconsidering whether $15–$25 is worth it if they’re unsure how the new seating system will play out.
- Overall hesitation? As Southwest slowly sheds the very things that made it unique, perhaps people aren’t rushing to prepay for perks anymore.
- The economy? With threats of rapidly rising prices, people are more hesitant to spend money.
We don’t have hard data (yet), but for an airline where T-24 check-ins used to be a battle, this was a noticeable shift.
Let’s Not Get Too Hot-Takey… Yet
Now, I’m not about to declare the end of Southwest based on a single early-morning flight. We’ve all seen flukes before. Sometimes you get lucky, sometimes you get B60 even after setting multiple alarms and sacrificing a bag of peanuts to the travel gods. (Just not Southwest Peanuts, those are long gone.)
Looking around at the gates this morning, none of the departing flights seemed full. There were plenty of empty seats by the gates before the planes boarded.
And honestly, this isn’t our only trip with them. Thanks to a credit card sign-up earlier this year, we earned a Southwest Companion Pass, and we’ve got several more flights booked in the months ahead. So we’ll have plenty of chances to see if this was just a one-off or part of a larger trend.
So while this flight was definitely eyebrow-raising, we’re not jumping to conclusions—yet. But we are keeping notes. If this is a fluke, we’ll chalk it up to weird luck. If it happens again and again? Then maybe something really is up with Southwest.
Final Thought
Southwest built a loyal following by doing things differently. But as the airline heads into a new phase of policies and pricing, it’s clear something is shifting.
One unusually empty flight doesn’t make a trend, but it does pique our curiosity. We’ll be reporting back after our next few flights. And if this new reality sticks around? Well… we may need to rethink everything we thought we knew about flying Southwest.
Stay tuned.
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