Why The Uproar With Southwest Airlines Is So Much Bigger Than Checked Bags

Last week, Southwest Airlines announced that it will change its decades-long free checked bags policy and start charging them, with some exceptions, this summer. There have been several major policy changes in recent times, particularly after Elliot Investment Management took a $1.9 billion stake in Southwest. Increasing pressure from the stakeholders calls for drastic changes, as the company focuses on increasing its profitability. While US airlines take over $5 billion a year in baggage fees, Southwest decides to take a smallThe uproar among customers is much bigger than the airline’s new checked bag policies.

It combines all the recent changes the company has announced. From the devaluation of its points-earning structure, which impacted already-booked flights and taking away passengers’ ability to choose their own seats, to beginning charging for checked bags, customers’ confidence in the company seems to have been hit hard.Changes to drive revenue growth
Charges on first and second bags for most customers, except:
Rapid Rewards A-List Preferred members (two free bags)
Customers traveling on Business Select fares (two free bags)
A-List members (one free bag)
Other select customers (one free bag).Credit towards one checked bag for Rapid Rewards Credit Card members.

Changes to the number of Rapid Rewards points Customers earn on qualifying flights.

Passengers on Business Select fares earn more
Passengers on Wanna Get Away and Wanna Get Away Plus fares earn lessVariable redemption rates across higher-demand and lower-demand flights.
Southwest will introduce a new Basic fare on the lowest-priced tickets purchased on or after May 28, 2025, in advance of offering assigned seating and extra legroom options.
Flight credits issued for tickets purchased on or after May 28, 2025, will expire one year or earlier from the date of ticketing, depending on the fare type purchased.

Beginning May 28, 2025, Southwest will charge customers, with some exceptions, their first and second checked bags, with standard weight and size restrictions. These changes will apply to flights booked on or after May 28. The airline will continue to offer two free checked bags to passengers traveling on Business Select fares and Rapid Rewards A-List Preferred members, and one free checked bag to A-List members and other select customers. Southwest will credit one checked bag for Rapid Rewards Credit Cardmembers.

There has been a major change in the carrier’s reward points earning policies for qualifying flights where customers traveling on Business Select fares are rewarded more and those traveling on standard classes are rewarded less. Customers now earn more Rapid Reward points on Business Select fares while earning less on “Wanna Get Away'” and “Wanna Get Away Plus” fares. Southwest states that its Rapid Rewards program will also introduce variable redemption rates across higher-demand and lower-demand flights.

Benefits of RapidRewards
Redeem for flights and more
Rapid Rewards Members can redeem their points for flights through Southwest®, and for gift cards, merchandise, hotel stays, rental cars, and exclusive Cardmember experiences through the Southwest More Rewards program.

With Cash + Points2, Rapid Rewards Members can combine Points and other eligible forms of payment to purchase flights. Starting January 1, 2025, Cash + Points bookings will earn Rapid Rewards points, tier qualifying points for A-List or A-List Preferred status or Companion Pass qualifying points.“These strategic moves, aimed to deepen and reward loyalty between Southwest and its most engaged Customers, create new opportunities to reach consumers who value fare above everything else. To align with these changes, Southwest will introduce a new, Basic fare on our lowest priced tickets purchased on or after May 28, 2025, in advance of offering assigned seating and extra legroom options.”The airline is keen to widen its distribution channels to expand its customer base while finding new ways to increase profitability for the company.

These changes add to the initiatives already underway at Southwest, including the recent initiation of assigned seating and extra legroom options. According to the CEO of Southwest Airlines, Bob Jordan,“We have tremendous opportunity to meet current and future customer needs, attract new customer segments we don’t compete for today, and return to the levels of profitability that both we and our shareholders expect.”Customer sentiments
The disturbance among Southwest’s loyal customers is far greater than the mere charge on checked bags. Customers complain that the airline that has always been known to put its customers first, through its various policies over the years, is now following the capitalist model, which takes it away from its core.

According to a customer’s account, as narrated by the Dallas Observer,but I loved Southwest Airlines anyway because Southwest Airlines loved me. Now, like everything else good in this world, Southwest has been commandeered by capitalism, and we customers will be stuck paying more for the shell of what this company once was.”Southwest customers have faced a series of changes, all of which took away from what the airline stood by for decades. The standout factor of Southwest Airlines is gradually diminishing as the capitalist mindset takes over the very business model customers love. The airline has decided to part ways with customer perks that set them apart from rivals for more than half a century of flying. There is an uproar among customers from no seat selection and rewards-earning adjustments to charges on checked bags.“…it feels like Southwest Airlines’ free baggage policy was the last good thing it had going for it, and now a bunch of finance bros who hate good things have taken that too from us.”Many customers loved the airline for its little perks, the major one being free checked bags. A Southwest Airlines customer, Dorothy Severson, commented while awaiting a flight at Chicago Midway Airport,

“I would rather have the free checked bags, that’s for sure. It’s one of the main reasons I still fly Southwest.”Southwest is betting that more people will still stick with the airline and that the added bag fees will outweigh the loss of business for travelers who take into account baggage fees. Competitor airlines like Delta see an opportunity to grab more customers amid Southwest’s baggage fee announcement.

According to Delta Air Lines’ President Glen Hauestein, during the J.P. Morgan Industrials Conference,“I think clearly there are some customers who chose them because of that, and now those customers are up for grabs,”