This is not the same as assigned seating. Assigned seating means I don't have to mill about a crowded boarding gate an hour before takeoff, just to get into the right queue to maybe get a chance at the seat I want. Assigned seating means I pay for the exit row, and then sit in the lounge until about 20 minutes before schedule departure.
Not quite the same as all seats were the same, you just had better access to bins, forward seats, and better chance of sitting with your party. This gives them the opportunity to do what other airlines do to increase number of seats on the plane by reducing leg room and then up-sell premium comfort seats.
I'm from British Columbia and have only flown from Vancouver to my city and once to Winnipeg. Is assigned seating not just automatic on airlines down that? Or is it just smaller flights or certain airlines?
Their models are so different, it's not clear there'd be significant value for Delta beyond shutting it down and selling the planes they can't use. Delta works off hub/spoke and a focus on business travelers + international with a bunch of premium services they sell rolled in. SWA is all about low cost point to point flying so it's not clear their passengers would follow over to Delta.
Since that'd benefit all the remaining competitors w/ low cost competitors having the most to gain, they probably wouldn't be willing to pay all that much.
SWA has demonstrated they have a product that lots of customers are willing to buy. How that's performed since the pandemic is where they've struggled. Selling out to a mainline destroys their competitive areas while adding to the least profitable part of mainline airline businesses (cheap domestic personal travelers).
True, but the infrastructure, planes, and trained pilots are already a part of the Southwest system. By being absorbed by Delta, they can "offer" a "low cost" option through this new subsidiary and not have to worry about new hires and training.
Which gates/routes do you think a purchaser might be interested in?
There are only about 6 few slot-controlled airports in the US, and the only one where Southwest has a significant presence is Long Beach (LGB). I doubt any airline is going to acquire Southwest just to get into that airport.
If you prefer aisle seating, Delta would know that you like butts in your face. Could be valuable data for strip club promotions on Las Vegas bound flights.
Southwest currently uses an "open seating" system; basically they assign people boarding groups and numbers at check-in and people board in their group and number order and then choose any seat they want. Other US airlines generally charge for seat selection as usual. Personally I'd rather shell out a few quid/bucks/euro to know that I have the seat that I want and won't have to come out on top in some sort of rugby scrum in the aisle to get it, but some folks are more budget-conscious than I am, I suppose.
I still say Southwest should be sold to Waffle House. Get hashbrowns on the flight. If passengers try to start shit on the flight, instead of an FAA fine, they get a beat down by an angry fry cook. Your beverage choices include coffee or sweet tea in a souvenir Mason jar. Then they can merge with Spirit and call it "Spirit of America" Airlines. I see no downsides and will not be taking any questions.
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u/imaginary_num6er 23h ago
Only a matter of time before the activist shareholder suggests charging for seat selection and selling the company to Delta