Southwest Airlines
reviews and complaints

I am suing southwest airlines on the basis of the following and I recommend anyone who has the same or similar problem to do so immediately:

In reference to the events that occurred and resulted from flight 2690 (Las to sfo) on 07/21/2013 involving two plaintiffs, lipscomb and lipscomb; southwest airlines company (Swa) intentionally wronged them by taking and possibly retaining their baggage. Swa alleges no wrong doing by its adhesion contract, the contract of carriage (Coc) , however, contract law and the coc proves otherwise. The baggage polices in swa’s coc are unconscionable. Swa’s failure to disclose one or more material facts regarding the coc, swa’s gross negligence and swa’s breach of contract caused permanent damage to the lives of the plaintiffs. This caused their vacation to be completely ruined, in addition to grand larceny theft, identity theft, pain and suffering, expenditures and loss of wages. Swa is fully liable and responsible. Any defense of swa through the coc should be rendered unenforceable by the court. Return of their property, subsequent damages, attorney’s fees and/or court costs should be awarded as sought to the plaintiffs.
One element of a valid contract is the free consent of both parties to acknowledge the contract and accept to perform it. Both parties must be in full capacity to form a contract so fundamental decisions can be made and equal bargaining power can exist.
Neither plaintiff was issued a current copy of swa’s coc. Only (1) out-dated insert entitled & lsquo;swa’s notice of incorporated terms’ (Snit) was issued to the plaintiffs and even it was cleverly stapled behind their tickets. Upon later review of the insert, it seemed to summarize some generic concepts similar to the coc but it was far from being informational and situation-specific enough for the plaintiffs to have made an informed decision. The insert asserts that swa has some accountability, however it fails to clarify how much accountability for items such as electronics, irreplaceable and/or high-value items, collector’s items and etc: & ldquo;there are limits on liability for loss, damage to or delayed delivery of passenger baggage, including, fragile, perishable and certain other irreplaceable and/or high-value goods or contents, as specified in the contract of carriage. & rdquo; the insert does not state swa doesn’t cover these aforementioned items.
On the other hand, the coc states swa & ldquo;assumes no responsibility for and will not be liable for money;…computers and other electronic equipment;…fragile or perishable items; irreplaceable…;and similar valuables contained in carryon or checked baggage. & rdquo; essentially, the coc is stating swa doesn’t cover these same aforementioned items. This is a huge discrepancy. And this is critical information that was not disclosed in swa’s notice of incorporated terms.
Again as previously mentioned, the coc allows swa to have zero responsibility for high-value items consistently present in carryon baggage, while at the same time this contract allows for them to have some limited liability at their discretion for & ldquo;loss of, damage to, or delay in delivery of checked or carryon baggage and/or its contents…” in this particular emergent case of the plaintiffs, the only way they would have properly obtained access to fully review the coc was after rendering their baggage to the flight attendant. At that point it would have been too late. The current and complete copy of the coc is only available online or request by us mail. Furthermore, the coc defines & lsquo;checked baggage’ to mean & ldquo;baggage of which carrier takes sole custody and for which carrier has issued a baggage claim check and affixed a baggage tag. & rdquo; it does not seem right for swa to take sole custody of baggage and not expect for the passenger to hold them liable for it and its contents. With an outdated insert and the absence of vital information there is no enforceable defense for the defendant.
Furthermore, swa, its servants, and agents never disclosed any material facts of the coc pertaining to duffel bags and transport thereof to the plaintiffs. Prior to rendering their bags, the plaintiffs attempted to place their bags under their seats, inside the cabins and etc. As they had done on all of their previous flights. Unfortunately, the flight attendant determined their efforts would render safety issues in the event of an emergency. The flight attendant demanded their bags be gate-checked (Rendered and checked to the flight attendant for transport).
The flight attendant did not verify if they had assistive devices (I. E. Prescription eye-glasses or medication) or high-value items in their duffel bags. One of the plaintiffs voluntarily informed the flight attendant that 2 of the 3 bags were fragile. These 2 bags happen to be the bags that are still missing to this day. The only statement the plaintiffs ever heard regarding their bags after boarding flight 2690 was that the plane would not take off until this matter of checking-in their bags was resolved. This was announced over the intercom for everyone on the plane to hear. Would anyone really volunteer the time to say they had medication or prescription glasses in their bags and rummage around trying to find these items-especially since it was made obvious they were delaying the entire plane from being on schedule? Again they were never asked so they didn’t tell.
Besides, they would be home in less than an hour with all of their bags and belongings. Or so they believed.
The plaintiffs reluctantly rendered all 3 of their carryon bags to the flight attendant in attempt to follow swa’s insistence of safety and to avoid further flight delays. The flight attendant took their bags and returned with 3 baggage claim checks: [protected], [protected] and [protected] for them to later claim their bags. Each of these & ldquo;checks” or bag tags had barcodes appearing that swa scans them to track the gate-checked bags. After the plaintiffs rendered their bags, the same stocky (200 lb to 230 lb) , clean-shaven, short dark-brown hair, white male c flight attendant with blue/green eyes and glasses was unusually nice to them for the remainder of the flight.
Let it be clearly stated, at the time of surrender; the plaintiffs were misled, lacked material information contained in the coc and/or rendered their bags under pressure, undue influence, distress or misunderstanding.
Swa flight attendants should be trained and fully knowledgeable of the baggage polices/check-in procedures for baggage outlined in their current coc. These agents should reinforce the information relayed in the coc with each passenger who is required to surrender/gate-check their bag. No reasonable or informed person (I. E. The plaintiffs) would ever agree to render their uninsured personal belongings (Laptops, a tablet, camera, 9-in-1 portable dvd/tv player, irreplaceable sentimental items, collector’s items and etc. ) to swa, its servants or agents if they knew swa did not cover the partial or full value of these items. Or that swa could not guarantee the delivery of the gate-checked bag on that passenger’s particular flight. When the general scope of swa’s baggage polices is applied to this particular situation, the coc seems intentionally vague and disconnected. When the specific scope of swa’s baggage polices is applied to this particular situation, it becomes quite obvious the contract is only in favor of swa as it attempts to & ldquo;legally” remove their obvious liability to carryon bags containing high-value items. If it can somehow be concluded that swa legally does not cover certain high-value items based on their coc and their notice of incorporated terms; then why does swa gate-check baggage containing such items knowing these items could be somehow damaged, lost, delayed or stolen by internal/external personnel?
Finally, this was the first time either plaintiffs have experienced an ordeal of lost luggage.
Ideally, it seems this type of contract should have been signed and dated by both parties and copies thereof should have been issued to each of them as verification of receipt/acknowledgement of swa’s coc.
“ [swa] achieved record revenues of 17.1 billion in 2012, nearly tripling the revenue over the last decade. Other highlights of the performance section include [swa’s] 40th consecutive years of profitability (A feat unmatched in the us aviation industry) ; the addition of swa service to two new states (Georgia and iowa) and six new airports; as well as details of our superb operations, such as achieving 83.1 percent ontime performance and recording the best baggage handling in our history. & rdquo; this is an excerpt from swa’s one report for july 2013 in a magazine on flight 885 (Bwi to las). Having read such an article, the plaintiffs were pre-assured of swa’s overall commitment to customer satisfaction, customer service and prudence in baggage handling. However, when the plaintiffs arrived to their final destination, lax, they discovered none of their baggage claim checks reflected in swa’s baggage systems for lax, sfo or las. What happened? Within moments, the plaintiffs proceeded with filing a & lsquo;lost/delayed report receipt’ with swa to find their bags. The plaintiffs were only able to retrieve 1 of the 3 missing bags (Tag: [protected]) , which arrived on flight 3850 approximately 9 hours after they landed in lax. This & ldquo;found” bag had one of the plaintiff’s name on it. The other 2 bags only had both plaintiff’s names inside the bags. That is unless the flight attendant & ldquo;affixed a baggage tag” to each of the appropriate bags and followed protocol as required in swa’s coc: & ldquo;each piece of baggage tendered to carrier must have a current identification tag or label with the passenger’s name, address, and telephone number. & rdquo; none-the-less, when this & ldquo;found” bag was inspected by one of the plaintiffs, it had an additional and completely different tag on it labeled with the flight number 1812. Neither flight 1812 nor 3850 was apart of the itinerary for the plaintiffs. Why was this bag on 2 different flights unaffiliated with the itinerary for the plaintiffs? The coc states & ldquo; [swa] will only accept baggage for transportation on a flight on which the passenger is transported [and swa] will only accept baggage for transportation if it and its contents can withstand ordinary handling, and if its weight, size and character render it suitable for transportation on the particular aircraft on which it is to be carried, unless the passenger agrees to assume the risk of checking the baggage and the carrier conditionally accepts it pursuant to section 7. H. & rdquo;
Furthermore, the bag that was found was missing a collector’s item (Bases load nes) , which belonged to one of the plaintiffs since early childhood. Additionally, this bag was damaged on the inside beyond ordinary handling, whereas it had been in mint condition prior to being gate-checked with the flight attendant.
Again, the plaintiffs were never issued swa’s coc and they did not have the necessary information to help them make fundamental decisions regarding whether or not to release their bags to the flight attendant to be gate-checked. With this in mind, they could never have agreed to assume the risk of checking their baggage despite swa’s acceptance of their bags. The flight attendant had a duty to the plaintiffs to exercise the proper protocol for checking baggage (I. E. Making sure the plaintiffs bags were properly labeled with the plaintiff’s information (Name, phone number, address) and affixing them with swa’s tags, verifying the appropriate relationship between the plaintiffs (Strangers, siblings, friends etc. ) , verifying the final destination for the bags and etc. ). He was also responsible for ensuring their fragile bags were suitable for ordinary handling and that the plaintiffs understood their assumption of risk to gate-check their bags. The flight attendant was responsible for keeping the bags on the same flight as the plaintiffs.
Furthermore, based on the ambiguity derived by swa’s coc and swa’s admission of negligence in baggage handling, it also seems swa neglected their overall duty in this matter. The plaintiffs received an email on 08/19/13 stating the following: & ldquo;we do not currently have a scanned baggage tracking system because all of the systems we have analyzed and tested for scanning and tracking luggage are too costly for our business model that stresses low fares and quick turnaround times. Therefore, our baggage tracking system allows each airport to perform bag searches for & ldquo;like” bags and contents. We are reviewing additional options in this regard with the hopes that we can implement a system that will benefit our customers while still allowing us to focus on low costs. We currently include bar codes on our bag tags in anticipation of future tracking systems. & rdquo; the expectations set in swa’s magazine and the assumptions made when one receives a swa baggage claim check overtly conflict with this email. Perhaps this fact should be stated on the actual bag tag.
Apparently, swa completely trusts their employees and doesn’t feel the need to pursue proper checking of baggage.
Since 07/21/13, the plaintiffs have repeatedly asked swa to review camera footage, collaborate with airport police, interview the flight attendants, baggage handlers and etc. To help manually research the whereabouts of their lost bags and so their bags with all of their personal belongings can be returned to them without further incident. Perhaps swa really profits by opening the door for organized terrorist crime and internal theft to take place right in front of our noses at the airport. This seems similar to the & lsquo;bait and switch’ concept. Surprisingly, swa refuses to do any research beyond computer traces for the missing bags. Swa has even told the plaintiffs that there is no airline access to the security cameras at the airports. It is questionable why swa doesn’t have access to the security cameras. If this is true, why refuse to collaborate with the entity that does have access to locate their bags? Swa stated the flight attendant last seen with their bags was interviewed; however, no information about the flight attendant can be released-including badge number or employee number. These bags contained high-value items: clothing, collector’s items, assistive devices (Prescription eye-glasses and medication) , irreplaceable sentiments, their social security numbers, driver’s license numbers, addresses, checks, tax statements, bank statements, pictures, military documents and many more identity specifics related to the plaintiffs.
According to transunion:

• identity theft is the fastest growing crime in america.
• the number of identity theft incidents has reached 9.9 million a year, according to the federal trade commission.
• every minute about 19 people fall victim to identity theft.
• it takes the average victim an estimated $500 and 30 hours to resolve each identity theft crime.
• studies have shown that it’s becoming more common for the ones stealing your identity to be those closest to you. One study found 32% of identity theft victims discovered a family member or relative was responsible for stealing their identity. That same study found 18% were victimized by a friend, neighbor or in-home employee.
• most cases of identity theft can be resolved if they are caught early.
• financial institutions & ndash; like banks and creditors & ndash; usually only hold the victim responsible for the first $50 of fraudulent charges.
• only 28% of identity theft cases involve credit or financial fraud. Phone, utility, bank and employment fraud make up another 50% of cases.

Please note again, most cases of identity theft can be resolved if they are caught early. It is unacceptable for swa to not manually investigate the matter-especially to prevent further injury caused to the plaintiffs.
Gary kelly, chairman, president and ceo of swa, & ldquo;received a note from a customer who traveled with us from houston to dallas. She was about to deplane after landing at love field when she notice that the small sapphire dangle from one of her earrings was missing. As she was looking for it, one of our flight attendants took notice and immediately started helping her search for the missing gem, to no avail. Our flight attendant took the customer’s contact information incase the sapphire turned up later. Sure enough, it showed up the following day. Our employee called the customer to let her know she had found it and she even personally delivered the earring to the customer that day. & rdquo;
The plaintiffs are missing much more than a small sapphire dangle. If a small piece of jewelry can be found, then certainly so can their bags. Or at least a valid explanation can be given as to what happened to their bags and why swa made so many negligent acts. Surely, swa doesn’t make distinctions in their level of customer service from passenger to passenger. If so, then they are practicing discrimination, which is another lawsuit altogether.
Weeks after being unsuccessful, swa continued to place computer traces on these bags. How can you expect to find missing bags using computer traces when the baggage claim check numbers for those bags were never entered or scanned into the system since the date of the incident? After the central baggage department conducted 1 week of traces, they gave up, closed the case and paid one plaintiff $472.00 and the other $1, 554.00 for their losses. These amounts are not nearly enough for replacement of the items that are replaceable (2 laptops, tablet, 9-in-1 portable dvd/tv player, camera etc. ). For those items that can’t be replaced (Sentimental items, photographs, identity etc. ) , how can you truly put a value on them? Neither the snit nor coc examines swa’s liability for identity theft. The only statement that may be applicable to swa’s true liability in this situation is as follows: & ldquo; [swa] is not liable for the loss, delay or damage to unchecked baggage, including personal items, unless damage to such baggage or items resulted from [swa’s] fault or that of its servants or agents. & rdquo; it can be argued the missing bags are unchecked bags because there was no identification tag or label (Passenger’s name, address and telephone number) affixed to the bags and the bag tag/bag checks were never scanned into swa’s system.
Finally, this & ldquo;reimbursement” does not cover the pain & suffering, time/expense for their research, loss of wages, court costs etc. , which both plaintiffs have encountered as a result of 07/21/13. This goes beyond a regular mistake. Swa intentionally made their contract unconscionable and they are purposely making it difficult for the plaintiffs to recover their bags. It is easier for swa to be 100% negligent than to be 100% prudent and accountable for its actions.
The legal dictionary defines breach of contract as failing to perform in any term of a contract, written or oral, without a legitimate legal excuse. Southwest airlines has no legitimate legal excuse for its gross negligence or why the bags still remain missing.In theory, if there was a contract between the plaintiffs and swa, then it should be enforced against swa. Per the coc & ldquo;liability for destruction, loss or damage to checked baggage is limited to events that took place onboard the aircraft or while the baggage was under the control of [swa] . & rdquo; however, swa is assuming no liability and no responsibility for their actions, its servants or agents thereof. The plaintiffs were on flight 2690 because flight 885 (Bwi to las) was late landing to las. This caused them and many other passengers aboard that flight to miss their connecting flights from las. Swa rescheduled the plaintiffs for the next available flight, which was the following day, flight 2690 (Las to sfo) and flight 47 (Sfo to lax). It appears 2690 may have been overbooked, since there was no room on the plane for the plaintiffs to store their bags.
According to the coc, & ldquo; [swa] may, in its sole discretion, refuse to transport, or may remove from an aircraft at any point, any passenger in any of the circumstances listed below. The fare of any passenger denied transportation or removed from carrier’s aircraft en route under the provisions of this article will be refunded in accordance with article 9 of this contract of carriage. The sole recourse of any passenger refused transportation or removed en route will be the recovery of the refund value of the unused portion of his ticket.
(1) safety. Whenever such action is necessary, with or without notice, for reasons of aviation safety. & rdquo;
This lawsuit could have been adverted, if swa followed the coc. If no alternative flight could be found for the plaintiffs to carry their bags on the plane, the best decision swa could have made in this event was to refuse to transport the plaintiffs due to safety and refunded the unused portion of their tickets.
A breach of contract also involves such serious violations as the failure to deliver a promised asset. The coc does not place guarantees on anything pertaining to the transport of passengers and their belongings. However, when the swa flight attendant forcibly made the plaintiffs surrender their carry-on bags, it can be inferred there was a promise to deliver these bags to the correct destination, which was lax. Even if the destination was incorrect, such as being delivered to sfo, these bags should have still made it to a proper swa location.
Since the time of the disappearance of their bags, the plaintiffs have driven back to las, sfo and lax to hopefully retrieve their belongings. No one, including, swa, its servants, agents, airport police, other airline personnel and etc. Can recall anything matching the description of their bags or the contents of those bags. To add to the hardship of the plaintiffs, swa does not care to manually investigate and find their bags. Without the appropriate labels and tracking, their bags could be anywhere. Their bags could be forever lost through internal theft or external theft happening at swa. Or these bags could be misplaced in swa’s main warehouse for lost luggage, known as the central baggage station in dallas, tx, waiting to be auctioned, sold or destroyed. The time for swa to act was the day of the event.
Unless proven otherwise, the plaintiffs have ruled out the possibility of external theft. However, this does not negate the fact that identity protection measures had and must be enforced because of the events that have occurred. And it does not rule out the possibility of organized crime and terrorism.
Additionally, if swa looses baggage to this capacity and doesn’t care to manually investigate these matters with higher forces (I. E. The police, fbi etc. ) ; american safety and public welfare will be dramatically ruined because of the possibilities of terrorism, organized crime and internal theft that can easily take place at the airport. The only reason why swa hasn’t fixed their system is because no one has made them change their ways. No one will make them change their ways unless someone of higher power does.
Regardless of the defense, swa’s failure to disclose one or more material facts regarding the coc, its gross negligence and breach of contract forever altered the lives of the plaintiffs, in addition to, completely ruining their vacation. Swa is liable and responsible. Swa needs to return their property or provide an explanation as to where the whereabouts of their property; pay for the subsequent damages: grand larceny theft, identity theft, pain & suffering, lost of wages and expenses, attorney’s fees and/or court costs as sought by the plaintiffs.

Gary c. Kelly
President and chief executive officer
Gary. [protected]@wnco.com

Jim ruppel
Vice president, customer relations & rapid rewards
Jim. [protected]@wnco.com

Teresa laraba
Senior vice president, customers
Teresa. [protected]@wnco.com

This incident occurred on Air Tran flight #1 traveling from Cancun (12:50pm) to BWI. I entered the flight after a long restful week vacation to have to deal with a very rude stewardess name Erika. Not only did she gave a very nasty disposition when i asked for cream and sugar for my husband's coffee, but she constantly walked up and down the aisle hitting my arm and shoulder (she is larger than the average stewardess, and instead of walking down the aisle sideways, she switch her humongous hips down the aisle hitting several passengers on the flight. I was sitting in a buck head seat. There was no reason for her to constantly hit my arm and shoulder but only to attempt to aggravate me. I am a handicap individual with a neck, shoulder, and arm injury. At no time this did this stewardess pardon and/or apologize, or even check to see if I was okay after she hit me.

Boo on you…AirTran. The pet policies on AirTran are atrocious! FYI: I have already spoken w/ your customer service rep on Monday…day of flight…for 30 min. I haven't received any response yet. I'll see how long after Thanksgiving it takes for a response…if @ all. What's even more interesting is that Southwest's pet policy is: "Southwest Airlines accepts small vaccinated domestic cats & dogs. All in-cabin pets must be carried in an appropriate carrier, as indicated below & are subject to a $75 pet fare each way/pet carrier. The pet carrier counts as either a carryon item or a personal item." "Southwest Airlines allows only one pet carrier/ticketed Passenger."
"The carrier may contain two (2) cats or dogs & must be of the same species/carrier."
"The cat or dog must be completely inside the pet carrier & be able to stand up & move around the carrier with ease." This finding is particularly interesting as AirTran is NOW owned by Southwest & I followed SW's pet policy to a 'T'! Also the pet carrier I was required to purchase was nearly 1/2 the size of my carrier…& provided poor Mister Charlie far less room than Bailey Sue had in the carrier I already had. He certainly was NOT able to stand up & move around the carrier with ease…as it was quite evident when I witnessed the top of the bag bulging when he stood up.

Supposedly the policies have recently changed…however the policy stated on AirTran's own website does not reflect the 'new' changes.

My problem on Monday: While flying home for Thanksgiving…as I was waiting to board w/ my 2 precious small Maltese dogs…a 'NEW' policy was presented verbally that only 1 dog/carrier was allowed. This creates quite a problem b/c in order to do this it requires an extra carrier &…according to the 'NEW' policy…would require an extra person. As it now states…"Airfare for a pet is $75 one-way & is non-refundable. Six (6) pets are allowed with a limit of one (1) pet/paying customer traveling on the same flight." And THAT'S where 'they' got me! Nowhere did it state that 2 dogs can not be in the same carrier…nor does the current policy even have a weight restriction. But as soon as 'they' NOW noticed the '1 pet/paying passenger' policy…the issue was now 'that'…& not '2 dogs in the same carrier' issue. :0

See…I am a single young woman who has flown multiple times w/ dogs on AirTran & other companies…& have NEVER received this kind of mistreatment & humiliation…& @ the GATE no less! I nearly missed my flight d/t this last minute…'Oh we can't allow 2 dogs in the same carrier crisis.' (FYI: I had been sitting @ the gate since 9:30 am & flight did not leave till 11:08 am.) This pet carrier crisis wasn't brought to my attention until the flight was about to board!? :0| First…the claim by AirTran employee Stephanie Rutledge…was that only a mother & her pup could fly in the same carrier. Knowing that the 'current' policy did not state this…I replied w/ 'This IS her son. She's 5 & he's 2.' To which her response was: The pups must be of the same litter & under 8 wks old. That's when I required this 'new' policy be shown in WRITING. As her worried eyes skimmed the current printed policy…I could tell that it obviously did NOT have her statement in it. I even had to go so far as to bring it up on my iPad to prove to her that the policy she was holding (that I currently have in my possession)…was the SAME one on the internet. Then…& only then…did she latch on to the new '1 pet/flying customer' policy. And as I said previously…THAT'S where they had me! I was told I must purchase a 2nd carrier & pay an additional $75 pet fee. Their solution ONLY created more problems for me…cause NOW I had 3 carry-ons…& 'Oh Yeah!'…2 dogs in 2 separate carriers but only 1 paying passenger. :0{

If it hadn't been for 2 lovely angels…placed in my path Monday…I would still be in Tampa Airport stranded w/ no way of getting back home…to either of the 2. First the issue was I needed to pay for an additional pet fee & carrier…which easily totaled over $100. I had only a small amount of $$ on me & they would not even speak to my mother over the phone who was trying to do anything at this point to get me home. They wouldn't even attempt to manually type in the same CC # that I used to purchase my ticket, original pet fee, & checked luggage fee. They wanted the physical card now. That's when the 1st angel walked into my life in the form of 'Kim from DC'. She ended up paying w/ her own CC & would not even give me her address to repay her…OR to even send a thank you! She must have noticed my shirt I was wearing & told me 'It's fine…I ran the half marathon w/ you yesterday". It was like a breeze of fresh comradery had entered my solo circle of it's ME against ALL of 'YOU' mentality. In a clash of irony…the Women's Half Marathon in St. Petersburg had brought 2 first time race runners together in this time of crisis. Of course that's where AirTran employees had to shortly dash my hope w/ yet another one of their problems. I still needed a 2nd paying passenger for the 2nd dog. That's when my 2nd angel entered my life…in the form of 'passenger last name Norman in row 30'. She volunteered to take 1 dog during the flight & that's the info she gave me as she boarded the plane in case I was also allowed to board. Of course AirTran employees went so far as to look the info on the other passenger to insure its accuracy. And THEN…& ONLY THEN…was I able to board my flight for my quick 2 hr flight back home. Boy!…it sure seemed like they were doing more to prevent me from getting on that plane than helping me to board.

I wish that's where my troubles w/ AirTran stopped…but NO! :0( I was either treated rudely or snubbed by the gentleman supervisor attendant & 2 female flight attendants. Before we took off…as the gentleman was walking the isles…I requested his attention. It felt as if he was purposely avoiding me w/ his back turned so I called for his attention w/ 'Sir'. Then you would have thought another CRISIS happened. He turned around & in a very rude, harsh tone barked, "WHAT'S HE DOING OUT?!?!" I looked down at my feet to see the most adorable, sweetest little head had popped out of the small crapped carrier I was required to purchase that was nearly 1/2 the size of my carrier. It was Mister Charlie…my mischievous little guy…that was only trying to get some air out from under the seat. He also was flying for the 1st time solo & was more anxious…as they made me separate him from his mommy 3 rows up. I replied that he wasn't out…he had just 'popped' his head out. I was then lectured as to how the carrier was to remain closed @ all times! Even though the pet policy only states: "The pet must remain in the carrier & under the seat for the duration of the flight." Mister was NEVER out of the carrier OR out from under the seat. Nowhere does it mention that the carrier must be zipped up completely OR that the dog's nose or head can't be 'popped' out for air. How does AirTran expect animals to get ANY water during the flight w/ this factitious statement that was being enforced. He also made it a point to mention "…cause I've already spoken to the pilot & he knows if there's ANY problems with you…" Not sure what would have happened cause that's where he ended his threat. I was & STILL AM insulted that he felt he had to report me to the pilot…like I was a possible terroristic threat! All due to the INCONSISTENT…INACCURATE pet policies that need some major revamping & ENFORCED PROPERLY!

How in the world does AirTran expect anyone traveling solo to fly w/ 2 small dogs weighing roughly 10 lbs combined?!?! Well according to AirTran's 'new' pet policy…they can't EVER! Even if I chose to EVER support AirTran w/ my $$ again…I couldn't as the 'new' policy stands.

I obviously wish I had never had this undue stress put upon me…but if it had not been for AirTran's inconsistent & rude treatment…I would have never been able to experience the wonderful, generous, kindness of 2 totally complete strangers! :0}

If I had the financial resources & personal connections…I would LOVE to start my own airline for animals…particularly canines. This airline would NOT make you pay $150 for 2 dogs one-way…& then make you shove them under hot seats in a much smaller carrier than the one you already had. INSTEAD it would cater to humans & canines equally…allowing carriers…or even better yet…dog car seats…to be placed securely fastened in the seat right next to you! Your dog could be attended to properly…given adequate food & especially WATER! NOT thrown under a hot seat after paying more than most humans on the plane did for their one-way ticket.

In this day in age…I have a choice as to the companies I support w/ my $$. I most certainly WILL support the companies who value & RESECT both me & my dogs! BOO…BOO on you AirTran! :0{

Southwest Kicks Allegedly Sober Passenger Off Flight for Seeming Drunk

Southwest Airlines is famous for occasionally and removing folks from flights for questionable reasons: being too fat, too gay, too weepy, too Muslim. Even your boobs might pose a problem. Now a private school principal tells us that she wasn’t permitted to board a flight because an employee told her she was wasted, even though she says was completely sober — and has the documentation to prove it. This time, however, Southwest’s defense goes beyond one employee’s discretion.

Last weekend, Erinn Chioma, the principal of a Wilmington, Delaware area private school, enjoyed a lovely mother/daughter excursion with her 15-year-old daughter, three of her colleagues and their daughters at the Essence music festival in New Orleans. On the evening of Monday, July 9th, the group departed New Orleans and headed home, arriving for a layover in Houston about an hour later. Southwest is the “official” airline of the Essence festival, so Chioma wasn’t surprised to find the terminal more crowded than she had ever seen it before; the final leg of the group’s flight back home was delayed for an additional 20 minutes. Chioma says she took that time to charge her phone, use the bathroom and buy a beer along with her coworker at Buffalo Wild Wings, which she took with her to the boarding gate in a clear plastic cup.

Back at the gate, Chioma says she noticed that the employees seemed “frustrated” about having to deal with the last minute gate changes and standby issues. When she approached the counter to inquire about the status of her flight, a customer service representative told Chioma that her flight would board in ten minutes but that Chioma would not be on it because she was too drunk to fly.

“I initially thought she was joking, as I was not drunk or under the influence of any substances, ” Chioma said. She told her daughter and colleagues to go ahead and board the plane — assuming that the situation would clear up as soon as she made it clear that she wasn’t wasted — and offered to recite the Gettysburg address or to say the alphabet backwards to prove that she was sober. In response, the Southwest employee asked Chioma if she was on medication. Chioma told her she took pills for ADHD, and the rep told her she shouldn’t have mixed medication with alcohol — a fact she knew, the rep said, because her son has ADHD.

(Okay, thanks, Doc.)

The employee gave Chioma a partial Hilton hotel voucher (she still had to pay $59.99) and asked if she wanted to call the police. Definitely, Chioma said. But, according to Chioma, the police officer who arrived at the scene told her the airline had the right to refuse service to passengers and, even though he could tell she wasn’t drunk, he couldn’t give her a breathalyzer because they’re only used in traffic situations. An observer urged Chioma to go to a nearby hospital and get a toxicology test to prove her sobriety. Chimoa’s daughter got off the plane and joined her mother, and they went to the hospital for a toxicology test — Chioma had a point to prove. As you can see from the photo of the report, provided to us by Chioma, her blood alcohol level was

I send a letter out in Sept. Certified via post office and I still have not heard back from Airtran... My original letter.

2nd Notice January 25, 2012
Original Date 1st letter was sent out September 28, 2011

AirTran Airways, Inc.
Complaint Resolution Officer
9955 Air Tran Boulevard
Orlando, Florida 32827

Re: To Whom It May Concern,

Because I know you will do a great deal to help me of my horrible airline experience, I feel I can turn to you with a matter that has caused me much personal frustration and even more wasted time. On July 26, 2011. I had a flight that was suppose to leave Las Vegas at 7am “Flight # 227” flying into Milwaukee. I did a online check and didn't have enough ink to print my boarding pass, which I figured I would print it at the airport. When I arrived at the airport I went to go print my boarding pass at the kiosk and discovered that there was no kiosk for me to print my pass. I was livid due to the fact that Vegas being one of the most popular tourist destination/airport and to not have a kiosk to print out my boarding pass was disturbing and not acceptable. I live in new york, which our airport size don't even compare to the size of Vegas Airport and the amount of people that travel through there, which we have a kiosk to print out a boarding pass. On top of that AirTran is not even up to date with technology out of all the airlines I traveled it's also disturbing that AirTran don't even offer paperless check-in. I should be able to use my PDA to check in with my boarding pass. My entire reason for doing online check-in is to avoid long lines and being able to go to my gate directly without dealing with an agent.

When I arrived at the airport there was a long line and two agents working at the time, which I had to stand on the line. When I finally got to the front which I still had 20 mins to make my flight. I was told that I will not be able to make my flight and would have to do a standby mind you I had no check in luggage. When I arrived at my gate I notice that passengers was still boarding the plane which made me more frustrated because I could have definitely board my flight.

I was place on a standby on the next available flight, which I did not make because it was full. I was then placed on another flight as a standby, which I finally made it on. “Flight #511” landed in Milwaukee where I had a 3hr delay, which I was not happy about. My whole day was wasted and was a complete disaster for me. I spent a total of 6 hrs extra in traveling on top of the 5 ½ hrs it takes to fly to NY. I lost a day of work and 6hrs of my time that I will never get back. As a business customer service is key and I felt like Airtran lacked that. Out of all the times I traveled throughout my life. I never had a bad experience or complained about my travels. I think that Airtran is unreliable and do not value there customers. From my experience and treatment I will never use your service again, as there are plenty of airlines that do value there customers. I rather take my business else where even if that means paying extra money to fly. I am requesting a full refund or complimentary round trip ticket. I look forward to your response, thank you in advance.

Sincerely,

Shenese Brannon

I recently traveled to Las Vegas, Nevada from Boston, Massachusetts using Air Tran Airlines. I booked both the flight and hotel accommodations for a group of six people through Air Tran’s website. The package I booked included a round trip flight with a layover in Milwaukee, Wisconsin both ways and two hotel rooms at Planet Hollywood Casino in Las Vegas. The actual booking of the trip was very straightforward and easy. The website was user friendly and took very little time to complete the reservations. The website itself is very familiar to booking a trip on Expedia or other travel providers.
My complaint is from the events that occurred on the trip itself. When I went to check in for our flight the morning before we left the website showed six passengers with six seats next to each other. I went through the check in process and printed boarding passes. When we got to Boston Logan Airport our reservations were lost. The person at the main desk had no idea what went wrong or how to help us. We were left standing at the front desk for almost twenty minutes until the situation was rectified. We were lucky the plane wasn’t sold out because our seats were given to someone else. If the website allows a guest to check in for their flight and print boarding passes their seats should not be sold to other customers. I could not fathom the idea of how this happened but we were on our way to Las Vegas so in the scope of the trip it did not matter.
We landed in Las Vegas close to midnight. We got to the Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino close to 1 am with hopes to check in and go to bed. This transaction did not go smoothly. The person working the front desk informed us that Planet Hollywood only received the reservation for 1 room from Air Tran and there were no other rooms available for the night. We were told there was nothing they could do about it until Air Trans Offices opened the following morning. Planet Hollywood ended up cleaning a room for us so we had a place to stay. The next morning we called Air Tran and were put on hold for close to 2 hours. Eventually we got the room situation fixed and we received our two conjoined rooms as planned. Air Tran did not offer any apologies for the trouble we went through. The only thing they were willing to do for us is to give us one $25 gift card towards future Air Tran travel.
This type of service is unacceptable. Although the convenience of booking a trip all at once is extremely appealing, the realization that there is no one around to help you when things do not go according to plan is disheartening. In this case, it was both a technology failure and a lack of personal interaction that made this service an absolute failure. I have booked a similar trip through Expedia and Orbitz in the past and it went extremely smooth. If the competition can get the service right why can’t Air Tran. The lack of cordiality pushed me over the edge. I had all of the paperwork saying I booked the trip appropriately so I did not appreciate the help desk people accusing me of lying. They should have apologized at a minimum and compensated me for my time lost waiting to check in, move rooms, and wait on hold for the next service representative. I will never fly Air Tran again due to this experience.

I would like AirTran to compensate me for my time lost and aggravation during my recent trip.

My wife and I had B-40 B-41 SOUTHWEST airlines boarding passes. We had an A boarding pass from LAX to Vegas When we boarded the plane in LAS VEGAS - Albany ny, we saw 2 seats an aisle and middle seat empty; however, a newspaper and glasses were on the aisle seat. These were the only two seats together. I asked the person sitting on the window seat if anyone was sitting there. He stated he didn't see anyone. The man [about 40 ish ] sitting in the opposite aisle seat stated yes the person was in the bathroom. This seemed stange to me and my wife and I continued to look for seats. Not finding seats close to each other futher back we started to go back up. It dawned on me that the person was saving a seat in the aisle for his friend. By that time the middle seat was taken and I confronted the person saving the aisle seat. Let him know he was saving the seat. Called the flight attendant and she stated I think he's in the bathroom that's what the person told her. Well, the person who sat in the seat had a B-60 BOARDING pass. I knew this because the person was in the B line and tried to get on first and was told he was the last on the B line B-60. my wife and I had to sit in middle seats away from each other and had to go to the back of the plane to eat the sandwich we brought on board to share, we ate standing up. I was angry and fuming. As soon as I arrived home I complained. This is the response I received:
We are sorry you are disappointed with your and your wife's recent travel experience after witnessing other people save seats.We never want our Customers to walk away with unpleasant memories, and we apologize for your frustration.
Since we have open-seating, the question of saving seats is a difficult one. On the one hand, to maintain the integrity of the boarding process and to allow choice of seats to those with early numbers it makes sense to limit the saving of seats. Of course, on the "flip side, " we don't want to separate family members as we realize it is important for some to be seated together (i.e. those traveling with young children). Nevertheless, we certainly apologize for your disappointment. Please know that we have tracked the main points of your e-mail via our monthly summary, which is distributed to our Senior Leadership.
Elise Southwest Airlines
No children involved . Children are let on early. Response was poppycock.. Instead of stating there are no saved seats, this is the nonsense I received. This ticted me off more. Called Southwest and was told to call [protected] on Monday which I will do.
THE SOLUTION;
Get a blue pass for early boarding . It's available to everyone and used by many often for pre-boarding. They cannot ask you on your medical condition. I always despised many phonies who use this ruse and feel sorry for the people in need.
Someone in Baltimore had a B boarding pass had his wife get a wheelchair, had an attendant wheel him on to the plane with his wife following. My wife and I were in the A group we saw this person walking briskly from the back of the plane to the front having the people going on to move and let him back. It was a miracle.
So what is the policy of Southwest ? It's open seating or saved seats? Or if you get a High B number get a blue card medical pass. If Southwest can't follow their rules, why should you. We have traveled all over on various airlines. We never encountered a problem including when we flew Southwest before. Southwest seems to be in decline . It appears they are confused with their own policy. Now I see a lawsuit with their drink coupons.

Airtran I won't be able to take my flight this week on the 4th. I wanted to go see my new grandbaby up there in Baltimore but I got the flu and its supposed to be bad weather up there and would make me even sicker. My husband aint getting around that good and wont use his walker so I guess we wont make it up to see that baby. We will have to wait for her to visit us. Just refund my credit card I used.

We flew Airtran last April from Orlando to Milwaukee. The next day we realized that my daughter left her Nintendo DS in the pocket of her seat. I was very disappointed at the run around I received from Airtran employees on trying to see if it was still on the plane. I was told the plane went on to Vegas and then cleaned. I am sure a contracted cleaning employee found it and kept it. When I called the next day another employee told me the plane was cleaned when it arrived in Atlanta. I had the tail # of the plane and someone could very easily have contacted the plane we were on checked our seat pocket to see if it was still there. Nobody could do that for me. Not sure if we will ever fly with AirTran again.

I am very disappointed with southwest! I cancelled 2 tickets on April 25th because of a weather issue at the destination. I was told that I could use the amount for any traveler, not just the ticketed ones. Supposedly on April 29th, they decided to enforce the policy said to have been in place for 10 months and no longer will allow it. My son has been out of the country for nearly 2 years. We were trying to book tickets for my daughter and her boyfriend to meet my son and his fiance in Dallas. My daughter and son have not seen one another since he left. They have not met the other's new relationship. We have planned an entire week of family/friends reunion based on the fact that we had these funds to purchase tickets. Now, they are refusing to let me use the funds.

It is too far for my daughter and her boyfriend to drive because of their commitments at school. If we don't get this worked out, it will be 6 more months before they see each other as he is moving to the east coast the week after the planned events.

This is very upsetting! If that was the policy on April 25th yet not being enforced, why was I told that it could be done?

Please do something to take care of this. I was promised a phone call, but all I got was an email. Makes me feel like a very valued customer.

Southwest airlines has a "new policy" that they never informed anyone about. If a person books a ticket for another passenger and the trip is cancelled, the buyer of the tickets will not get the other passengers flight miles back regardless of who paid for the tickets. This exact thing happened to me and it is my duty to inform other people. This must be a ripoff scam to compensate for money lost when their planes fuselage was ripping open in mid air. Please please please don't buy from southwest, they are knowingly ripping off good people.

Hello on Monday June 13, 2011 I was scheduled to fly from Atlanta, GA airport to New York Laguardia airport flight #360. Flight was scheduled to leave @ 7:30 which of course it did not leave on time. But that is not my issue right now, the issue was that they let this airplane fly out of Atlanta and get half way to New York to tell us that we have to turn around and go back to Atlanta after being in the air for over an hour. My problem is that usually when people take those early morning flights it is because they may have some place to be at certain time and the earlier they fly the better. I am very disappointed that an airline would turn the plane around fly back to the departing station and not accommodate the passengers for their inconvience.

I had driven from Canada to Minneapolis and then taken Airtran from Minneapolis to Florida and the flight was pretty much okay. On the way back, (From Florida to Minni) 2 weeks later, it was a different story. We arrived to the desk where we got our tickets (myself, my friend and her parents), and the lady stated that only 2 of us had assigned seats, (my friends dad and myself) and if we go through security, then to our gate, we would be assigned seats. We go through security, and go to the gate only to be told "Okay go sit down and we will call you up". That never happened. 5 minutes before they began boarding, my friends parents walked up to the desk and made it clear that we still didn't have the 2 assigned seats. The lady began talking very rudely saying things like, "No YOU'RE not listening to me.. listen to what I'm saying... stop talking". There was also a man who was separated from his family, because the airline overbooked. They said, "well 2 of you can get on and 2 of your can catch the flight 6 hours from now". This was a big issue because we had driven from Canada, and it would have been hard to arrange where the 2 that left would wait. We then said, "okay well that guy can go with his family and we'll wait for the 6 oclock flight". We were compensated with first class to Milwaukee (not from Milawakee to Minni), 2 paid for hotel rooms when we arrived in Minni (it would be 11 by the time we landed) and 4 free round trips to anywhere the airline flies. This seemed fantastic and we were obviously happy. We get to Minneapolis, call the hotel we were supposedly booked in, only to discover that they did not in fact book us any rooms. We had called the shuttle already and there was no time for anything. We literally were stranded at the airport with NO hotel room because they lied and never booked our hotel rooms. It seems so unprofessional to lie to your paying customers, when you're just screwing your company up in the end. We're now planning a trip to Aruba, but I'm not sure if i'm able to trust this airline.

I purchased two tickets in April or May of 2017 and before the flight I changed my plans and drove to my original destination. When seeking options before canceling my flight I was told I coud use the credit or transfer the credit to someome else use. I decided to cancel. I called in November 2017 to clarify my credit for another vacation I was taking and decided not to use Southwest. When checking with Southwest I was told again I could use my credit or transfer it. In February I was planning another vacation and decided to drive versus fly. I actually wrote my confirmation # down during this conversation so I wouldn't have to call again and bother to get the number. I called in April to confirm use of tranferring of credit to my father for a vacation he was planning. I received the same story of tranfering credit but my dad chose to fly from the local airport instead of Denver. I finally placed an ad to transfer the credit to someone who needed to fly before June 12th (1 year after original flight). I arranged the details with the intended receipient and called Southwest to ensure ease of transfer- GUESS WHAT- the tickets weren't transferable anymore. I want to thank Marsha as the original contact who obviously didn't care to discuss it so she had me call Customer Relations. Then helpful Richard got on the line and basically took the stance No we can't. I was very reasonable despite my absolute anger now. No one seemed as helpful as they do on the commercials. They did offer to extend my credit after the one year deadline. Of course it'll be $50 per ticket charge. I don't know how they can change the rules and I have to agree with them. I can tell you one thing- Once this transaction is complete I can guarantee you I won't fly Southwest. I'd rather deal with integrity and pay the bag fees. Their commercials are actually kind of funny!

I had traveled with my family of four for spring vacation from San Jose to San Diego by Southwest flight 3369 Tkt no [protected] Confirmation no X6IVRD on 2ndApril 2011. When I collected my baggage at San Diego, I found that one of my Stroller/Bag was cut down partially on one side. I contacted southwest personal that inspected the baggage, lodged the complaint Report Number [protected] and replaced it. I asked me how it happened and as I have just arrived and to check whether every thing is fine in the bag. He informed that it may happened during TSA screening as the bag was locked. On reaching Hotel, I checked the bag & found my leather jacket, beauty kit, Sony Camcorder &Chargers of laptop daughters e-reader missing . I have tried to reach different departments, but to no avail.. My missing property amounted is around $1500.00.
I have heard that Southwest Airline has the most customer-friendly policy when it comes to checked luggage. but We are disappointed and feel as though Southwest Airlines baggage teams should collaborate more effectively and communicate with their customers. Mistakes happen, but Southwest should do a better job of handling customer concerns.
The airline crews are so friendly and outgoing... that image diminishes when you deal with the baggage office. The two are incongruent.

Damage Report Receipt Number [protected]
Taken date 04/02/2011
PNR X6IVRD; BAGTAG: [protected]

Traveling from Tampa, FL to Providence, RI. When we got home we discovered two pairs of sunglasses we purchased hours before boarding the airplane were not in our suitcase. We packed them very carefully making sure they were in between clothing so they would not break. Some how they were taken out of our luggage from Tampa to our destination in RI. I have been reading about others missing their sunglasses on Southwest flights. Well, if you are traveling Southwest, carry your sunglasses with you. Someone who has access to the luggage has a fetish for sunglasses.

I have been flying Southwest to Oregon for business. Recently Southwest has offered an "early-bird" check-in for an additional fee. When I was doing my taxes recently I found on my credit card statement that Southwest had charged an additional $20 per flight for the early-bird service. I have no recollection of asking for this, and the charge did not appear on the credit card receipt I printed out the day I booked on-line. I think the issue is the same whether I had actually asked for the extra service or not. The issue has to do with Southwest not providing accurate receipts, so we (the consumer) have no way of proving whether we did, or did not, purchase an item or service. When I emailed and called Southwest to complain, they acknowledged that they don't provide credit card receipts for the early-bird fee. WHAT? In response to my complaint, they emailed me receipts for the two ticket prices INCLUDING the $20 per early bird charge, receipts that don't match the ones I originally printed out, and was emailed a few hours later by Southwest (the receipts emailed clearly state: "cost and payment summary" and makes reference to the last 4 digits of the credit card used). They told me that I should have printed out the page where I (supposedly) requested the early-bird charge, even if it is listed separately and is not listed in the total charge for the trip. They told me that the "confirmation page" (which I supposedly saw) showing the early bird check-in fee, serves as my credit card "receipt". NO! A confirmation page is not a receipt, especially if the cost of it is not figured into the total shown as "billed to my credit card". I DO NOT DO BUSINESS WITH COMPANIES ON-LINE OR OFF LINE THAT DO NOT PROVIDE receipts. I provide my credit card information to a company in good faith that they have fair and accurate bookkeeping procedures. In this, Southwest has failed miserably. My loyalty to them has been sorely diminished. I don't think I should have to worry about double-checking my credit card statement after booking a flight with them, and even then, I can't prove anything was or was not requested. I will be looking at Alaska as an alternate carrier.

AirTran-Barclay Bank credit Card scam resulting in collection agency harassing me continually.Please spread this scam.. traveler beware at airports..

Airtran Airways/Barclays Bank Delaware are claiming I owe them $192.79 ($100+interest). I have tried numerous times in phone conversations with them and their collection agent, to explain that I never applied for a credit card with Barclays Bank, therefore, I have never charged anything to this fictional account. Researching internet I found history on this Scam.This fraudulent activity by Airtran Airways/Barclays Bank has been going on for several years as verified by numerous Scam sites.

Please pass the word to travelers to beware at Airports when a young person approaches you to take a benign survey in exchange for a FREE magazine subcription from AirTran...all is a lie and they will say you signed a Barchay Bank credit call and now own them $100 plus interest if you had not paid on time. You never receive a credit card or magazines...how do they get away with this fraud over and over again...thanks for any helping spread this warning to travelers.The collection agent has now written me that I own $192.00 and if I don't pay immediately they will send the debt to the credit rating companies that will tarnish my credit.

I had a Senior fare reservation on Southwest Airlines from Burbank to Manchester, NH last month. I called customer service for an upgrade to Business Select because on the flight out, I had to travel between terminals at Las Vegas and my aging hips couldn't make it walking from one terminal to another.

The agent sold me an upgrade, which was supposed to guarantee me priority seating for $200.

When it came time to board, the agents had just initiated boarding of the handicapped passengers, but they had not yet been seated. Because Burbank has no Jetways, they had to use a chairlift for one passenger at the forward galley door, so the first 5 "priority" passengers had to wait on the stairway for that passenger to be seated.

Meanwhile, Southwest uses an aft stairway as well as the forward one for boarding and the rest of the passengers, seeing us trapped on the forward stairs, rushed to the aft stairs and took all the priority seats.

At the connecting airport, we found that the through passengers on our connecting flight were already seated in the good seats, so we had no choice but to take the leftovers.

I suggested to SWA's customer service representative that at BUR, on originating flights, they should not use 2 stairways, which invalidates any semblance of priority boarding for "Business Select" passengers and that they should not start the normal boarding process until all handicapped passengers are seated. Those suggestions were ignored.

In summary, I paid a premium fare for a service that SWA could not provide. Any time your flight connects with another, which is almost always, the through passengers, not you, have priority seating because they stay on board.

SWA refused to refund the $200 "premium" fare, which I view as a ripoff scam.

Complete scam. I was on a Southwest airlines flight this weekend and tried to access their service and got nowhere. None of the flight attendants had been trained on how to solve issues, and they had no idea how to refund me. I brought it up with an agent on the ground, and all she could say was that I had to contact the company. I will NOT be flying Southwest in the future!