Southwest has a new look (pilots)

It's because every one of those mouth breathers is trying to carry on a bag the size of a small tank. So even though they all have an assigned seat, they still want to fight their way to the front of the line so that they'll have room to lodge their trunk into the overhead bin. I check my bag and lounge until 20 prior, then I walk on calmly. Much better.
 
ATN_Pilot said:
It's because every one of those mouth breathers is trying to carry on a bag the size of a small tank. So even though they all have an assigned seat, they still want to fight their way to the front of the line so that they'll have room to lodge their trunk into the overhead bin. I check my bag and lounge until 20 prior, then I walk on calmly. Much better.
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Oh yeah. I used to have the same phobia of checking my bag that most passengers seem to have. Then one day Delta brought an MD-80 into LIT instead of the usual RJ. I'm running up and down the aisle trying to find a place to put my bag. Then I realized that I missed my valet tagging.

Same thing the other night on a 737-900 coming back from DEN. Forward flight attendant called back to the aft and they said they had some room for my bag. Had to walk all the way to the back of that thing...that's like 7 miles of the sideways shuffle so that I don't brush my ass on everyone's shoulder.

I'd much rater put a tag on it and meet it at the jetway. I've only ever had two problems with this. Both were when they (non RJ) gate checked it. The ramp at the destination airports got confused by my "deadhead crew bag, keep plane side" tag. Both times it resulted in me staring at my bag out the window at an airport for which I didn't have a SIDA badge. All things considered...not a bad track record.
 
Meh, i really see no difference between between boarding processes, they all call your group in the end. I see one giant commonality, no bin space. I don't care about a seat, I care about checking in for bin space, except rj's typically plenty of space since everybody else has to gate check theirs.
In reality, Travelers are not afforded the luxury of "lounging" if they want to keep from gate checking with the tail end of group three. The idea that legacies provide some sort of premium product is farcical.
 
eightballfreight said:
Meh, i really see no difference between between boarding processes, they all call your group in the end. I see one giant commonality, no bin space. I don't care about a seat, I care about checking in for bin space, except rj's typically plenty of space since everybody else has to gate check theirs.
In reality, Travelers are not afforded the luxury of "lounging" if they want to keep from gate checking with the tail end of group three. The idea that legacies provide some sort of premium product is farcical.
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What's wrong with gate checking?
 
What's wrong with just plain checking, for that matter? I check my bag at the front counter. Then I don't even have to worry about it at security. Life is good.
 
Screaming_Emu said:
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Lemme stop you right there. You shouldn't be lining up for anything. You should be lounging comfortably in the gate until your zone is called. Or at least standing in the background somewhere.

Gate lice make me want to pick up my flight case and lob it into the crowd in front of the door. You think you're making the process faster....but you're not.
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I'm not talking about when there is simply one normal lane and a first class lane. I'm talking about when they have a separate lane for every boarding group. Then make announcements for all groups to line up in thier respective lane and start boarding each group once every one is in their proper cattle shoot. Happened the last few times I've been on United. I used to lounge comfortably in the Presidents Club or Sky Club but the airlines changed their deals with AmEx and my platinum card no longer gets me in. No matter the airline the boarding process sucks.
 
PositionAndHold said:
I'm not talking about when there is simply one normal lane and a first class lane. I'm talking about when they have a separate lane for every boarding group. Then make announcements for all groups to line up in thier respective lane and start boarding each group once every one is in their proper cattle shoot. Happened the last few times I've been on United. I used to lounge comfortably in the Presidents Club or Sky Club but the airlines changed their deals with AmEx and my platinum card no longer gets me in. No matter the airline the boarding process sucks.
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I still stay seated until my zone is called, usually works out pretty well.
 
Don't care for it, like you said, rj's are one thing which I don't really mind because it is normal and my bag fits anyway, but on mainline where it is abnormal, I dislike turning my bag over at the gate. Don't send that shiz to the carousel. I have a small enough bag I like to keep my valuables with me as well.
Fear factor mainly.
 
Screaming_Emu said:
What's wrong with gate checking?
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Half the time I travel it's to get back to the airplane. When we get there we usually don't have a lot of time. I need to get my bag and head to the airplane to get it ready for the trip home. I also have a legal carry on and that's it. I don't want the room by my feet taken up, I want to be able to put it in the bin.
 
Ugh, I hate that crap. The bins were originally designed for purses, brief cases, hats, and jackets. Whoever it was in the luggage industry that came up with the rollaboard that fits in an overhead bin should be shot.
 
ATN_Pilot said:
Ugh, I hate that crap. The bins were originally designed for purses, brief cases, hats, and jackets. Whoever it was in the luggage industry that came up with the rollaboard that fits in an overhead bin should be shot.
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They wouldn't have had to "come up with it" if the airlines treated belongings with respect, not to mention getting them to the same destination as the person who checked it.
 
PositionAndHold said:
Half the time I travel it's to get back to the airplane. When we get there we usually don't have a lot of time. I need to get my bag and head to the airplane to get it ready for the trip home. I also have a legal carry on and that's it. I don't want the room by my feet taken up, I want to be able to put it in the bin.
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Gotcha. Valid point. But for most passengers (including myself when I travel for pleasure) there really isn't one. I'd pick gate checking over checking at the gate though. If a bag gets left, its usually somewhere on its way to/from an airplane. Checking it at the gate removes at least one part of that travel.

Also, as a word of warning. At my carrier, even if a bag is of legal carry on size and there is room, carry on bags cannot be brought onboard the CRJ-200's we fly. Kind of dumb, but its how the FAA wants it. That you have to valet tag and you can only bring your personal item on board.
 
PositionAndHold said:
They wouldn't have had to "come up with it" if the airlines treated belongings with respect, not to mention getting them to the same destination as the person who checked it.
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There is a 0.309% chance that your bag is going to be mishandled at all, let alone actually lost. The airlines do an incredible job with baggage. The horror stories are vastly exaggerated.
 
ATN_Pilot said:
There is a 0.309% chance that your bag is going to be mishandled at all, let alone actually lost. The airlines do an incredible job with baggage. The horror stories are vastly exaggerated.
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That plus put only things that you can buy at your destination in your suitcase. I always need new clothes, having mine temporarily displaced is a good enough reason to go out and get some more, because I sure as crap won't do it on my own.

I always laugh at people who pack really heavily full of things they MIGHT need. My line is usually "you know that people live there, right?"
 
ATN_Pilot said:
There is a 0.309% chance that your bag is going to be mishandled at all, let alone actually lost. The airlines do an incredible job with baggage. The horror stories are vastly exaggerated.
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It still sits about 8 bags per 1,000 passenger. That doesn't even come close to the amount of damaged bags. Testing stats are also is getting lower because people don't check their bags as often. like my stuff. I like my stuff even better when it's with me when I need it. Especially since when I get to a city, I am probably leaving within hours to either go back home or another location. By the time my bag would find the original destination I'll be gone. So for me, it goes on the over head.
 
Screaming_Emu said:
That plus put only things that you can buy at your destination in your suitcase. I always need new clothes, having mine temporarily displaced is a good enough reason to go out and get some more, because I sure as crap won't do it on my own.

I always laugh at people who pack really heavily full of things they MIGHT need. My line is usually "you know that people live there, right?"
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Yep. My medication, passport, pilot certificate, etc. is in my computer case that comes with me. Everything else is easily replaceable and doesn't need to be a foot from my side at every second of the flight.

I came to the conclusion a while ago that travel really isn't all that bad. It's the people that you're stuck flying with that are what can make it miserable. Whether it's the toddler whose incompetent parents let him run up and down the aisle hitting all of the seats, or the • trying to cram a monstrous bag into an overhead bin, or the guy on his cell phone talking at 300 decibels just so you know how important he is, the fact of the matter is that it's not the airlines that make travel miserable; it's the people. And it just gets worse if you're flying on a certain airline whose people think it's just gosh golly wonderful to rap a boarding announcement over the PA or play a "cabin game" in flight while you're trying to sleep or get some work done.
 
Screaming_Emu said:
Gotcha. Valid point. But for most passengers (including myself when I travel for pleasure) there really isn't one. I'd pick gate checking over checking at the gate though. If a bag gets left, its usually somewhere on its way to/from an airplane. Checking it at the gate removes at least one part of that travel.

Also, as a word of warning. At my carrier, even if a bag is of legal carry on size and there is room, carry on bags cannot be brought onboard the CRJ-200's we fly. Kind of dumb, but its how the FAA wants it. That you have to valet tag and you can only bring your personal item on board.
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Thanks for the heads up. I end up on Skywest's bro's a lot and haven't had a problem. I do end up on CRJ's from time to time but can't remember the last time I was on a 200. I've had pretty good luck the times I've had to valet it. The few times I plan to check I'll still valet so I don't have to wait downstairs.
 
ATN_Pilot said:
Yep. My medication, passport, pilot certificate, etc. is in my computer case that comes with me. Everything else is easily replaceable and doesn't need to be a foot from my side at every second of the flight.

I came to the conclusion a while ago that travel really isn't all that bad. It's the people that you're stuck flying with that are what can make it miserable. Whether it's the toddler whose incompetent parents let him run up and down the aisle hitting all of the seats, or the • trying to cram a monstrous bag into an overhead bin, or the guy on his cell phone talking at 300 decibels just so you know how important he is, the fact of the matter is that it's not the airlines that make travel miserable; it's the people. And it just gets worse if you're flying on a certain airline whose people think it's just gosh golly wonderful to rap a boarding announcement over the PA or play a "cabin game" in flight while you're trying to sleep or get some work done.
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I think I had every one of those the last flight. Plus to guys from India who were sitting in the middle seat next to me and the one behind. They did nothing but yell back and fourth the whole way from LAX-OAK. I'm sitting by the window just falling asleep when all of sudden mr. middle seat decides he wants it open. There was a murderous rampage that flashed though my brain but I thought better and just closed the window.
 
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