Southwest Announced It’s Now Charging For Bags, And It Backfired Spectacularly, And Amtrak Got Caught In The Crossfire
There was a time when Southwest Airlines truly stood out from the hellscape that is modern air travel. For one, there were no assigned seats on board, just boarding groups at the gate, which will soon change.
Southwest airplanes at a busy airport gate preparing for departure, with workers and equipment visible on the tarmac
Then, on Tuesday, the airline announced that it would end its long-standing “two bags fly free” perk… and start charging to check bags.
Close-up of a plaid suitcase with a Southwest Airlines luggage tag attached, showing travel preparation
They also announced a new basic economy fare that won’t allow no-charge changes or refunds.
People were obviously outraged.
Tweet with Denzel Washington “alright” GIF: I defended you against all the haters Southwest, and you do this to me???? Okay. Alright
They cracked jokes, too.
Tiffani and Kelli from Insecure laugh with wine glasses. Tweet: southwest said “ya’ll broke??? US TOO!”
Tweet: Southwest Airlines: You’re now free to fly with literally anyone else. GIF of person playing flight attendant snatching a ticket and saying “thank you”
Many saw this as the company choosing revenue over customer loyalty, like this A-List Preferred flyer with over ONE MILLION rewards points.
Screenshot of a tweet by Barry Forrest addressing Southwest Airlines, mentioning travel preferences and achieving over a million loyalty points
This person said, “Southwest wants to eliminate their free checked bags policy? GIRL YOU THOUGHT I WAS CHOOSING YOU FOR ANYTHING ELSE?!”
NeNe Leakes looking skeptical in a crowded room. Tweet reads: “Southwest wants to eliminate their free checked bags policy? GIRL YOU THOUGHT I WAS CHOOSING YOU FOR ANYTHING ELSE?!”
People got brutally honest about the Southwest decision. This person said: “It’s so interesting to watch companies purposely destroy their customer loyalty for no reason. Southwest was known for affordable, open seating, and free checked bags. Now they getting rid of all of it and just going to be another airline.”
Tweet conversation about Southwest Airlines ending its free checked bags policy, with reply about companies destroying customer loyalty
Southwest tried to clean it up with a cheeky little Instagram post, which was also, predictably, not well received.
Instagram post by southwestair with text: “It’s not like we traded Luka…” Tweet reads: I hate it here. Southwest really cooked us
This is somehow real.
Then, as brands are so fond of doing, Amtrak swept in.
Amtrak tweet humorously tweets: “guess we’re the only ones doing free baggage now”
People were NOT PLEASED, and I can’t say I blame them.
A meme of a Denise Richards scrutinizing something with tweet: “I KNOW that ain’t who I think it is” in response to Amtrak’s tweet
Most folks pointed to the fact that booking train travel with Amtrak can somehow hurt your pocket more than taking a plane.
Tweet replying to Amtrak: “Amtrak please sit this one out. It cost almost $2000 to travel across the country with yall”
“Amtrak is awesome if you like paying more than a plane ticket and traveling slower than a car,” this person said.
Tweet replying to Amtrak about train travel being slow and expensive
Amtrak tried to defend themselves as things got ugly…
Tweet: “Yes but your fares have been ridiculous for several years. Shame.” Amtrak responds with corporate speak about fares being based on availability
Tweet about Amtrak taking 3-4x as long as a plane and costing twice as much. Amtrak responds with corporate speak about enjoying the train ride as part of your vacation
…and this person pointed out their dramatic tone shift.
Tweet responding to Amtrak, criticizing the light tone of their tweets compared with how they respond to criticism of pricing
As this person so eloquently stated, “This is what happens when you insert yourself into other people’s business.”
Tweet responding to Amtrak: “This is what happens when you insert yourself into other people’s business, now you’re in the comments fighting for your reputation”
What do you think of this mess? Holler in the comments.
