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By Matthew Impelli
Life & Trends Reporter
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A longtime Southwest Airlines customer says he's "almost done" after a chaotic experience with its new assigned seating policy.
The original poster (OP), user realsomedude, recounted the incident on Reddit, explaining that he is a customer with A-List status and frequently uses Southwest to fly from San Francisco to Los Angeles.
However, his first flight since the airline implemented assigned seating was anything but smooth.
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He described the overhead bin situation as chaotic, requiring passengers to walk through the plane to find overhead storage space before then having to return to their row, moving against the flow of passengers “like a salmon."
“It is not a fast process,” the OP wrote, calling the change a step back from the simplicity Southwest was known for. “Not a fan.”
With fewer flights on their usual route and rising prices, the OP warned that any devaluation of the rewards program could push him to leave the airline entirely: “Southwest, you listening?”
Reddit Reacts
Reddit users weighed in via the comments, with one writing, “Happened to me yesterday, was in row 3 and bins were full, flight attendant said it's up to the passengers to put [bags] anywhere, and they wouldn't tell them they couldn't.
"I was in group 2 boarding, so many people acting like fools.”
Meanwhile, other users pointed out how many other airlines already use assigned seating.
“Based on the number of posts – I'm now convinced that there's an entire segment of Southwest exclusive customers who have never flown internationally or with other airlines, and this is like learning how to walk for them,” one noted.
“Respectfully, I fly on Delta and United regularly, and this isn’t an issue,” another added.
A Change in Policy
Southwest Airlines' new assigned seating model, which allows passengers to pay in advance to select their seats, officially rolled out on January 27, 2026.
As per Newsweek, the airline's open-seating model and "bags fly free" policy have long been cornerstones of its brand loyalty. Many loyal customers view the shift as a betrayal of the airline's founding identity and are publicly threatening to switch carriers.
The seating fees follow Southwest's May 2025 decision to end its free-checked-bag policy, introducing new baggage fees of $35 for the first bag and $45 for the second.
Newsweek previously reported on a video shared to Reddit showing an airport employee removing posts from a Southwest Airlines boarding gate.
The sight of the post disappearing struck a nerve with flyers who’ve relied on the airline’s boarding system to avoid the crowding and gate chaos that are common at competitors.
Newsweek has reached out to realsomedude for comment via Reddit and Southwest via email. We could not verify the details of the case.
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