You’re probably not interested in taking part in “fun” travel right now. Or maybe you’re interested, but know you shouldn’t. But there’s also those of us that have somewhere they have to be, therefore making air travel necessary. A time to put the travel credit card to use I guess. If this is you, and you’re curious about what airports are even looking like these days, here’s an inside look on what it’s like flying Southwest Airlines right now.
The Airport Terminals
The Chicago-Midway airport is normally not overcrowded especially compared to the O’Hare International Airport in Chicago. So during a pandemic I was rather surprised by the amount of people crowding at certain gates.
As for my particular gate, there weren’t that many of us. Only 28 to be exact. So I’m thinking certain airlines and destinations may have more passengers than others. Everyone at the gate wore a face covering and did their best to leave 2 or more seats in between one another.
Boarding the Plane
This part was interesting. While there is news of Frontier beginning temperature screenings in June, Southwest hasn’t implemented such measures yet. However, the CEO does claim the airline is not allowing flights to be booked to capacity. And all passengers and staff are required to wear face coverings while on the flight. Plus, unlike other airlines, all middle seats will be left open through at least October 31st.
As for the boarding process, passengers are called up by their boarding position. Only 10 passengers can line up and enter the jet bridge at a time. When boarding the plane, since Southwest has an open seating policy, you may sit anywhere after the first three rows of the aircraft. While some people are still concerned about being as close to the front as possible, staff encourages everyone spread out about the plane as much as possible.
The Flight
All food and beverage service is suspended on the airline for the time being. So you honestly don’t see very much of the flight attendants after the safety briefing. There were only 28 of us on a plane that seats over 100 people, so we each had our own row. This made the flight more comfortable than normal for sure.
If you’re going to fly, be sure to check out the CDC for the most up to date recommendations for essential travel to ensure safety for yourself and those around you.
The post What It’s Like Flying Southwest Airlines Right Now was first published on Coworkaholic.