Update 8/17/23: This has now been implemented.
Southwest has announced that they will be adding free standby for all passengers (currently offered to elite and full fare passengers and as an additional charge for wanna get away fares). In addition business select fares will now get free WiFi.
How useful this is will really depend on how full Southwest flights are.
So am I reading this right? If you buy a Wanna Getaway ticket and want a confirmed seat on a different flight, you pay the fare difference on a more expensive flight. OK, fine.
But if you want to fly standby on a more expensive flight, you don’t have to pay the fare difference?
Correct, per my understanding.
Customers have said this for years!!! Times are hard!!! Additional revenue always better than nothing 👍!!!
I think this is the link about it
https://www.southwest.com/airfare-types-benefits/sameday-standby-change/
I just tried doing this on a SW flight yesterday. They said this policy hasn’t been in place yet. Trash customer service? I asked for stand by and they mentioned I needed wanna get away plus fare…
Has anybody received notification of this policy change directly from Southwest?
I’ve heard nothing. It’s not like I’m some stranger, I have 4 SWA flights booked for the next few weeks
And there’s nothing on the SWA website about this.
Any Update on this? Have seen rumors of this going live Tuesday 8/15.. Guess will find out tomorrow…
Did not work for me on 8/15. Wasted 5 hrs in SLC 2/2WN/SWA :-(. Still glad the change is live now from 8/17…
Keep in mind that if you standby for an earlier flight, they don’t know if you’re going to be on that flight until everyone else has checked in and maybe even gotten to the gate, which in some cases may be too late to shift checked bags to a different flight.
So if you checked bags at the gate, your bags may not get on the same flight that you did.
Thus if you’re planning to possibly fly standby, it’s best not to check bags at check-in. Either fly carry-on only, or check your bigger bag at the gate once you know you’re boarding.
Really full.
It depends on the flight, the day of the week, and the season. Not all of them are really full, even if many of them are.
Does this mean if you have a flight with a layover and a non-stop opens with space around the same time, you can jump on the non-stop? Or does routing have to be the same?
Wondering the same…if you can go anywhere on standby that’s actually pretty cool.
Correct, but hopefully they re-route your checked bags on your earlier or different flight. That’s a big concern I would have using free standby upgrade.
Makes sense from SWs perspective, if they have empty seats available on early flights…they may be able to sell the originally booked later flight to someone else for additional revenue. If I was booked for a departure at 2 pm but jump out on a 10 am flight…there’s a bit of time to grab a paying customer. Close margins for time but if they get a good cascade of 4 early departures the last flight out of the day could pick up 10 extra revenue.
Every open seat costs money to ferry around the country. Yes, the additional weight of the PAX and luggage cuts into fuel economy but if they can get another pair of buns in a paid revenue seat later in the day…that’s just financially a better choice for the operator. They were already going to take the weight, might as well get another buck.
Customers have said this for years but SW has avoided it to avoid you buying a cheaper flight and getting on a more expensive one.
Countless times when we actually arrived at BUR earlier than we thought to go up to norcal but had to wait for our original flight because SW refused to let us board an earlier flight without charging us an arm and a leg. This is great if it works out as advertised.
Exactly! Same happened in July for us at MDW. And likely tomorrow at SLC. Praying this goes live tomorrow, as many have suggested it might… FC…
heard , they are going to stop selling the early boarding check in on few flights