Renowned flight ends their free baggage policy after 54 years

Southwest airlines has just recently announced that they will be ending their 54 years old policy of free checked baggage from 28th May. This comes as a shocking announcement to the airlines’ regular passengers as it was one of the major and widely appreciated offer executed by them.  

According to the information shared by Southwest Airlines, the ‘Bags Fly Free’ policy, will still be applicable to the members of the A-list loyalty program or business passengers, and they will not have to pay any fees.

The CEO of the Southwest airline, Bob Jordan stated in the press release they shared, stated, “We have met tremendous opportunity to meet current and future customer needs, attract new customers segments we don’t compete for today and return to the levels of profitability that both we and our shareholders expect.” 

Netizens react to Southwest Airlines change in free bags rule  

While Southwest Airlines stated the changes in the new rules, they didn’t shed light on the updated charges. The new announcement by the airline has sparked debate online, as netizens cite their views on the new announcement by the airline.  

A user named Joshua Seth wrote, “Southwest is destroying their brand. I used to fly them all the time, specifically because bags fly free. They have steadily become more expensive and less customer focused.”  

Another user named Judy Rae Jackshon expressed his views and said that the airline does not provide any perks, “We will be looking at alternate airlines as well. There really aren't any perks to flying Southwest these days.”  

“It’s a shame that SWA is now like every other airline. Gone are the days of it being worth flying SW. with assigned seats and no more free bags, what’s the point? I hate that SW has disappointed me so much. They were one of the last corporate hold outs that SEEMED to care about the customer experience and not the shareholder. Shame on you SW. SHAME,” wrote another user on Facebook.  

Notably, the airline started the policy of ‘Bags Fly Free’ back in 1971. The airline was most known for their two perks, the open seating and free bags. However, both of these policies are now no longer implemented which has acted as a shift in airlines services.