Summary

  • Experienced Southwest Airlines 737 MAX 8 flight, enjoyed free checked bags and app features.
  • Upgraded boarding and good legroom made for a comfortable experience.
  • Southwest Airlines seems to be upgrading and returning to its roots, with low costs and high spirits.

Recently, I had the honor of not just flying Southwest Airlines to Salt Lake City to say goodbye to an airshow hero, but I also flew two segments on the same Boeing 737 MAX 8 in N8832H. First from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) to Sacramento International Airport (SMF), and then from SMF to Salt Lake City International (SLC). I wanted to experience the Southwest Airlines 737 MAX 8 product and get reacquainted with the unique Southwest Airlines flying experience.

Southwest Airlines booking experience

I was able to book Southwest Airlines through their website and used some credits with the airline. I was also able to check that the flights used the Boeing 737 MAX 8 and choose the combination so I could finally have the 737 MAX 8 experience. Although I recently reviewed an Airbus A220 flight and hold the Airbus A220 family in high esteem, I also want Boeing, my home state aircraft manufacturer, to succeed. I also covered thoroughly the recent Southwest Airlines’ pilots union (SWAPA) negotiations for a new contract and want Southwest Airlines to succeed. Finally, with Alaska Airlines’ flight attendants in a tense contract negotiation, it seemed best to book with other airlines for some of this year’s flight needs. For all of those reasons, I wanted to fly Southwest Airlines again several years after the first review in 2022:

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Flight Review: Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700 Bellingham To Oakland

A first impression of the Southwest Airlines way of flying customers from booking to landing.

On this flight review, I would test out the app, the WiFi, and various other Southwest Airlines features. Including the famous “two bags fly free”

Two bags fly free – and are tracked

Yes, I decided to use the Southwest Airlines feature of two checked bags flying free. Well, I only had one bag checked of the two I could have – I go by public transportation, so I have to carry all my bags – but I was still able to check a bag for free using the Southwest Airlines app while still having my camera bag be a carry-on. For Southwest Airlines, retaining two free checked bags was a decision made in the wake of the 2008 Great Recession.

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Analysis: Why Offering Free Checked Baggage Works So Well For Southwest Airlines

It is just one of the many elements that sets the airline apart from others.

Granted the world’s top 20 airlines made collectively $33 Billion in 2023 from checked luggage, but bags fly free has become a unique Southwest Airlines amenity to passengers. As Executive Chairman of the Southwest Airlines Board, Gary Kelly said in Southwest Airlines’ self-published book, “Leading With Heart: Living and Working the Southwest Way”:

“Charging for [the first and second checked bag within weight and size limits] goes against everything we stand for.”

Additionally, according to the book, charging fees on five or six bags would be needed to replace the revenue from one potential passenger who lost interest in flying with Southwest Airlines. Hence the decision to let two checked bags within limits fly free.

I was also able to track the bags throughout the flight – which was a nice relief. Although one will have to install a SmartNotify microsite on your smartphone to get the tracking, one will be able to see your bag’s progress at each step along the way. For someone with anxiety issues, this is a relief – and a technology upgrade I wish other airlines would offer.

Upgraded boarding – at $30 a segment

First, I decided to pay for EarlyBird Check-In at booking so that I could snag an earlier boarding position. The problem was that for the SEA-SMF segment, I was in position A44, so I decided to spend an additional $30 the day before for upgraded boarding. Especially as being the 44th person to board a 175 seat aircraft would make me nervous to get a window seat in the first place – not realizing there were about 60 window seats available.

Snagging boarding position A4 meant with a little luck, I could snag a very choice seat. As such, I was very early on the 737 MAX 8, only after a Southwest Airlines employee and a few wheelchair users with preboarding rights. This gave me the best chance to get to Seat 7D and have nice photos that included the big CFM Leap-1B Turbofans. One can read more about the engines that help make the 737 MAX family 15% more fuel efficient below:

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How CFM LEAP Engines Enhance The Performance Of The Boeing 737 MAX

The design of the CFM LEAP engine makes it fuel-efficient.

I was also able to get a few photos of my seat and not feel rushed. Although I have multiple disabilities and could have requested early preboarding, I wanted the full Southwest Airlines experience – especially before rumored major changes are announced in a September Investor Day.

The flights themselves

Flying on the 737 MAX 8 in Southwest single class results in excellent lighting, good $8 WiFi, and a very comfortable seat with seatback power. In fact, Southwest Airlines has 737 MAX 8 seats with 32 inches of pitch and 17.8 inches wide – and I found them equally clean and cushy.

According to Points, Miles & Martinis, the seats are made by B/E Aerospace which is now bought by RTX and operated as Rockwell Collins, and the seats are called Meridian. Odd as I now report on other RTX products.

A Look Down the 737 MAX 8 Cabin

Photo: Joe Kunzler | Simpe Flying

I worked on my cellphone plus Chromebook during the flights with ease and tracked my flight for free. I also liked the adjustable seat rest – normally a feature reserved for higher classes of seating on other airlines – as much as the free nonalcoholic beverages like Community Coffee while enjoying the sights of… being “Free to Move About The Country,” as Southwest Airlines would say. I really appreciated being able to look down on Seattle, Mount Saint Helens, the California deserts, and the Great Salt Lake. Below are some photos of the sights along the way:

What I did not like was having to choose for the SMF-SLC segment either boarding position A55 or paying $30 dollars to leap ahead to A1-A15. Remember, I already paid $15 for early check-in, thinking I would be in an earlier boarding position by an automatic check-in. I decided to refrain from another $30 expenditure to be rewarded by going back from 7F to 9F and appreciate again my $99 Soundcore by Anker Space Q45 sound-cancelling headphones as I sat next to a big CFM LEAP-1B. A good value choice to save the $30 in my final analysis as at SLC, I had a fifteen-minute walk from the gate to baggage claim and then another five or so long minutes to retrieve my checked bag, only to have another few minutes to walk to the Trax light rail thankfully just outside the terminal.

Advantages of flying Southwest

Overall, I certainly enjoyed my Southwest Airlines flight. Especially with these advantages of flying Southwest Airlines:

  • Use of PayPal Pay-in-4 to split up payments – unlike Alaska Airlines
  • Two free checked bags – not just two free carry-on bags also
  • One-class seating, but one may purchase an earlier boarding position
  • A strong app that includes bag tracking
  • Good legroom for one-class seating

About N8832H

N8832H is a Boeing 737 MAX 8 that was ordered on July 2, 2021, with a first flight of December 7, 2022, and a delivery date of January 10, 2023. The 737 MAX 8 variant does not have a door plug, and the previous other issues around the 737 MAX family have been addressed.

Related

The Boeing 737 MAX 8 At Southwest Airlines: Everything You Need To Know

The aircraft has been a game-changer for the airline.

N8832H that day would start from San Jose at 7:14AM Pacific Time, then fly to Seattle, then Sacramento, then Salt Lake City, then Chicago and then Albany – the New York State Capitol. Although some want to push Southwest Airlines to fly red-eye flights, the 737 MAX 8 pulled into Albany at 11:52 PM Eastern or 8:52 PM Pacific – flying for over 11 and a half hours. On the first flight segment I was on, she was crewed by a blend of Chicago and Las Vegas crews.

Bottom line

I really appreciate how Southwest Airlines is seemingly upgrading. From tracking bags to new 737 MAX 8 aircraft to a cost-effective experience, Southwest Airlines seems to be coming out of its well-documented post-pandemic slump by going back to the ways of its founder, the late Herb Kelleher. As Herb Kelleher said,

“Keep costs low and spirits high, and the people of Southwest Airlines will keep LUV in the air.”

Hence the Southwest Airlines spirit seems alive and well. Especially with the customer service I got to experience during the flight.

Does this flight review entice you to fly Southwest Airlines? Please share in the thread why or why not?


  • Southwest Airlines Boeing 737-700 San Francisco

    Southwest Airlines

    IATA/ICAO Code:
    WN/SWA

    Airline Type:
    Low-Cost Carrier

    Hub(s):
    Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, Dallas Love Field, Denver International Airport, Harry Reid International Airport, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, Houston Hobby Airport, Los Angeles International Airport, Midway International Airport, Oakland International Airport, Orlando International Airport, Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport

    Year Founded:
    1967

    CEO:
    Robert Jordan

    Country:
    United States

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