23 thoughts on “Four Of Six Airlines Flying To Hawaii Aren’t DOT Compliant”
Donna B
Usually if I fly Southwest and pay for A boarding the airline let’s families with kids board 1st before A boarding not after.
On airline basic economy it states no seat assignment until you get to airport. So I think if you are flying with kids then you need to purchase a reg coach ticket.
The problem with SWA is their boarding pits passengers against passengers . No guarantees and some people are winners and others losers. Really like knowing what I’m getting in advance.
The Southwest flights we have been on in the last 4 months, (7 flights)including flights to Hawaii and interisland, have all called for families with young children to board after the A group boarding which means 2/3rds of the seats are still unoccupied. On one flight a family with young kids arrived at the gate after most people were seated. The stewardess compensated several passengers for moving so the family could all sit together.
No telling how the passengers “compensated” felt, or where they were moved to…again, the ideal situation is everyone knowing and counting on where they are sitting. I’m amazed some people put up with SWA’s competitive boarding procedure. Give me a choice in advance with a known price and I’m good.
If I don’t have airline status that allows me to reserve the seat I want w/o paying extra, then I generally pay for the better seat because it’s that important to me. I don’t see it being any different for families, i.e., if it’s that important to sit next to your children (and of course that’s important!), then you should be willing to pay for it if necessary. I realize that could cost a lot of money if you have several children. But flying isn’t cheap. The Southwest option for families to board between A and B groups is a very enviable boarding position, and families shouldn’t have an issue sitting together. If you want a guaranteed seat, don’t fly Southwest.
Southwest is by-far worst offender in this. In the past, I’ve always had to factor in the additional cost of Early Bird check-ins to the cost of Southwest flights in order to give myself a better chance of not being separated from my kids. It’s still not a guarantee, but I’ll have a better chance.
Frankly, I’d rather pay for checked bags than for early bird check-in…because families typically don’t have to check a bag for every person…but SWA does make everyone pay the early bird fee.
If you board at family time, after A and before B, how can you Not sit all together?! As one poster mentioned, 2/3 of the plane is still empty.
And you say “everyone has to pay for Early Bird Boarding”?
You may be paying for stuff you don’t need.
For the last several years we have chosen to purchase a third seat because my service dog is large and takes up floor 3 seats wide. My husband is 6’4″ so we upgrade to exta legroom. We pay the upgrade on the dog’s “seat” because of our choices.
I would think if guaranteed sitting with your children were important enough to you, you’d pay for seat selection areas.
It seems to me if I want my family to sit together on a flight to Hawaii, then it is my responsibility to plan ahead, and it is simple: I choose an airline that has a seat map showing the seats I can pre-purchase that will be assigned to me, and I pay the fares for those seats. In my world I do not need the DOT arm-twisting the airlines to force them to accommodate me with special procedures or regulations when I can make my own choices (your opinion may differ). Let’s not ask a government agency to intrude to solve a perceived “problem” that already has available solutions. Do family train and bus passengers always get to sit together? Hmmm …?
Paul took the words right out of the mouth. Wake up public . Please pay for what you want and not belly up to the government for all your needs. What next can I see if Pete B has an open seat on his private charter jet. Can I ask for my senior discount also.
We fly Hawaiian Airlines quite often. When selecting seats one can certainly select seats for children, if available, adjacent to each other without additional charge. However, Hawaiian has now gone to charging extra for almost all of their seats. Therefore, if the adult(s) have chosen seats in one of the many sections of the plane with extra charges then they most probably will also have to pay extra for the children that are sitting in the adjcent seats.
Usually if I fly Southwest and pay for A boarding the airline let’s families with kids board 1st before A boarding not after.
On airline basic economy it states no seat assignment until you get to airport. So I think if you are flying with kids then you need to purchase a reg coach ticket.
You haven’t flown SWA much have you. Pre-boards (“handicap”) go before A. Families Always go after A and before B. Always.
Families that hold A Boarding Passes can, of course board with the A Group. They don’t have to wait for Family Boarding which is after the A Group.
The problem with SWA is their boarding pits passengers against passengers . No guarantees and some people are winners and others losers. Really like knowing what I’m getting in advance.
The Southwest flights we have been on in the last 4 months, (7 flights)including flights to Hawaii and interisland, have all called for families with young children to board after the A group boarding which means 2/3rds of the seats are still unoccupied. On one flight a family with young kids arrived at the gate after most people were seated. The stewardess compensated several passengers for moving so the family could all sit together.
No telling how the passengers “compensated” felt, or where they were moved to…again, the ideal situation is everyone knowing and counting on where they are sitting. I’m amazed some people put up with SWA’s competitive boarding procedure. Give me a choice in advance with a known price and I’m good.
Southwest has defined “young” as under the age of 6. Their “family boarding” policy doesn’t help parents of elementary school kids.
It does now. Currently (this past weekend) on my flight, they were allowing 12u to board as a family.
Family boarding child age limit has increased to 12, this past weekend.
If I don’t have airline status that allows me to reserve the seat I want w/o paying extra, then I generally pay for the better seat because it’s that important to me. I don’t see it being any different for families, i.e., if it’s that important to sit next to your children (and of course that’s important!), then you should be willing to pay for it if necessary. I realize that could cost a lot of money if you have several children. But flying isn’t cheap. The Southwest option for families to board between A and B groups is a very enviable boarding position, and families shouldn’t have an issue sitting together. If you want a guaranteed seat, don’t fly Southwest.
The Hawaii DOT-A isn’t DOT compliant so there’s that.
Southwest is by-far worst offender in this. In the past, I’ve always had to factor in the additional cost of Early Bird check-ins to the cost of Southwest flights in order to give myself a better chance of not being separated from my kids. It’s still not a guarantee, but I’ll have a better chance.
Frankly, I’d rather pay for checked bags than for early bird check-in…because families typically don’t have to check a bag for every person…but SWA does make everyone pay the early bird fee.
You could do early bird for just yourself, and then hold seats for your family. People do it all the time.
Separate early-bird requires a separate reservation, which complicates check-in and if anything needs to re-routed due to airline issues.
If you board at family time, after A and before B, how can you Not sit all together?! As one poster mentioned, 2/3 of the plane is still empty.
And you say “everyone has to pay for Early Bird Boarding”?
You may be paying for stuff you don’t need.
For the last several years we have chosen to purchase a third seat because my service dog is large and takes up floor 3 seats wide. My husband is 6’4″ so we upgrade to exta legroom. We pay the upgrade on the dog’s “seat” because of our choices.
I would think if guaranteed sitting with your children were important enough to you, you’d pay for seat selection areas.
It seems to me if I want my family to sit together on a flight to Hawaii, then it is my responsibility to plan ahead, and it is simple: I choose an airline that has a seat map showing the seats I can pre-purchase that will be assigned to me, and I pay the fares for those seats. In my world I do not need the DOT arm-twisting the airlines to force them to accommodate me with special procedures or regulations when I can make my own choices (your opinion may differ). Let’s not ask a government agency to intrude to solve a perceived “problem” that already has available solutions. Do family train and bus passengers always get to sit together? Hmmm …?
Paul took the words right out of the mouth. Wake up public . Please pay for what you want and not belly up to the government for all your needs. What next can I see if Pete B has an open seat on his private charter jet. Can I ask for my senior discount also.
We fly Hawaiian Airlines quite often. When selecting seats one can certainly select seats for children, if available, adjacent to each other without additional charge. However, Hawaiian has now gone to charging extra for almost all of their seats. Therefore, if the adult(s) have chosen seats in one of the many sections of the plane with extra charges then they most probably will also have to pay extra for the children that are sitting in the adjcent seats.
This is not up to date. A month ago Southwest airlines has a new policy where families can sit together. Restrictions apply