SWA focused on the bottom line and neglected operations for the past 20 years. COVID hid a growing problem from management. Front line employees called out the issues but were ignored until upper management was replaced in early 2022. This will take a few years to fix but has been made a priority by the new management even prior to the meltdown.
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Old CEO cared about company, new CEO is a bean counter. Logistics went to pot.
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I have no limit for driving. I drove 12+ hours to a potacular once, and 24 hours straight to key west for a friendās wedding. Driving is my preference.
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IFYP
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My kind of gal. Let me know if you ever get the itch to go on a road trip!
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I drove from Boston to Miami for spring break when i was in college. It was fun, and I never want to do that again.
My SIL said he looks at the total time to decide whether to fly or drive. I think he said anything under about a 6 hour drive was probably about the same amount of time to drive vs fly when you took into account the drive time to the airport, how early you are supposed to arrive at the airport, how long the flight actually is, how long it takes to get to the gate, get off the plane and through the airport (collecting any checked bags and getting a rental car or meeting someone picking you up) and then driving to your ultimate destination. And that wasnāt even comparing costs.
Thatās how I see it. Chicago is a one-hour flight for me, but takes about 5-6 hours with all the time spent getting to the airport, getting to the final location, and driving takes about the same amount of timeā¦AND I have flexibility about when I leave and rarely have to worry about things like delays and cancelations.
But Iāll even drive when the flight is a little longer, because of travel frustrations alone. Like, up to 12 hours is nothing to me if it means I donāt have to deal with the stress of flying. Iāll fly for work because of tighter timelines, but for personal stuff, Iāll almost always drive.
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Itās not just how long it takes to driveā¦ itās also how long it takes to fly and whether I need a car at the destination. A layover vs a nonstop flight can easily tip the scales in favor of driving.
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Latest rankings put Delta in first place for 2022 North America on-time performance. Canadaās two main airlines had the worst timeliness; that certainly correlates with my personal experience with them this year.
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I work on a door-to-door travel time basis, subject to the rules I drive/fly under.
(Driving rules ā no more than 8 hoursā driving per day; Flying rules ā arrive 2 hours before flight, book no connections of less than 90 minutes, and never check baggage.)
As a practical matter, most destinations that are less than 6 hoursā drive are roadtripped, unless the train is a viable option. However, I will drive to a larger airport and fly from there if thatās what it takes to minimize total time in transit.
This is hugely reasonable. My rules are different, which leads to flying more and driving less.
Driving rules: no more than 3 hours driving alone, or 6 if i have company.
Flying rules: arrive an hour before the flight, plus 15 minutes for delays getting to the airport. Book no connections of less than an hour. Avoid connections if possible.
That being said, if the times are a wash, Iāll do whatās more comfortable. Which usually means the train for the northeast corridor, driving if itās a short trip, and flying if itās a long trip.
I rarely need a car at my destination. Needing a car nudges heavily towards driving, because renting cars is a time consuming nuisance.
Whereas i find driving stressful. So much paying attention. I can space out on the plane. And i get that awesome view during takeoff and landing.
I drive to my parents (about 4 hours) by myself at least once a year. Flying would cost a fortune bc their airport is tiny. And I donāt even know if thereās a direct flight. And I wouldnāt have my car. (We drive there other times but with my husband or daughter or both.)
I drove 20+ hours (broken up) to see my aunt at Thanksgiving. I had a passenger but she is not insured to drive my vehicle. There is no airport in her town and I would have had to buy 2 seats for my passenger because of her girth and then rent a car and drive 3 hours IIRC.
Plus we made it fun.
But yeah, thatās a lot of driving.
Eta: for grins I just checked and there are no direct flights to where my parents live from here. The shortest flight (from initial departure to final arrival) is about the same amount of time as driving if you donāt count airport time. It would cost $500.
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Maybe this needs another thread, but donāt understand what this means. Does your insurance have a specific restriction against other people driving your vehicle? Donāt Most auto policies cover other drivers as longs as they have permission?
Yeah there is definitely a story behind this. It was a long time ago and she might even be covered now but I havenāt called my agent to ask bc honestly her driving is more stressful than me driving.
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I find driving much less unpleasant with company. I donāt care that much whether i am driving or they are, most of the time.
Drape it over your seat and sit on it.
If itās huge, it might prevent someone else from stowing their suitcase. That sucks a lot more than sitting on your coat sucks.
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No, sitting on my coat sucks just as much. I checked my own luggage. Fuck the people who chose to be cheap with that. I should be allowed to put my coat up there.
As i said my coat is huge. That would be incredibly uncomfortable.
Its huge but squishy. So it takes up less room than a suitcase
if the coat is counted as one of your carry-ons and doesnāt put you over the limit, then the request from the attendants is annoying. if your coat was jammed into a plastic bag as a carry on and you stowed it, all good (and that is weird). but worn to the seat and jammed in the overhead somehow not?
if the coat, plus 2 other bags brought onā¦then lower priority stowing IMO.
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Okay i did put a backpack up there but if i could fit the backpack and coat in the same space that someone could fit a suitcase i should be allowed.
It should be a certain amount of space per person and then if you have more you wait to see if there is room. Not sorry bud, coats not allowed