SW from FLL

[DShock]

Does SW ever leave FLL on time anymore?  Recently had flight scheduled for 12:20, disembarked, got to airport by 10:00 to find our flight delayed by 6 hours!  They said it was a combination of weather,  Max 8, and crew.  We had same thing happen out of Tampa.   Anyone else having issues getting to and from FLL on time on SW?

Edited July 5, 2019 by DShock

[Tree_skier]

I have been having trouble getting flights on time just about everywhere with several different airlines.  Seems to be a universal thing.

[DShock]

Agree. Normally we go one night prior but with problems they are having now thinking about 2 nights, just in case there is one of those lengthy delays or cancellations. 

[katiel53]

My SW flight  last Sunday after debarking Allure was scheduled for 9:30 and it left on time.  My connecting flight though Baltimore was delayed because the plane was late coming from wherever.

 

The delay was originally about 45 minutes, which made my connection almost 4 hours, but it was reduced a bit, so it was about 3 and a half hours.  Too long to spend in an airport,  but my airport is not one of the most popular.

[CruiseDigits]

1 hour ago, DShock said:

Agree. Normally we go one night prior but with problems they are having now thinking about 2 nights, just in case there is one of those lengthy delays or cancellations. 

I've never used the service but it seems like Freebird may be an good option for a situation like this.  Seems like it would be less than paying for a second night at the hotel.

 

Would love to hear feedback for anyone who has used Freebird.

[FlyerTalker]

7 hours ago, CruiseDigits said:

I've never used the service but it seems like Freebird may be an good option for a situation like this.  Seems like it would be less than paying for a second night at the hotel.

 

Would love to hear feedback for anyone who has used Freebird.

 

Was offered to me as a free service when I booked my last flight through Amex.  Really didn't explain what it did, but since it was free, I took it.  And of course, the flights went off without a hitch.

[zdcatc12]

Not sure if this is what happened to you, but twice on SWA, I have had the plane that I was supposed to fly on, sent to a different destination after arrival, causing a delay for us. I knew because I was tracking the inbound flight for our flight and that plane ended up going to a different destination after it arrived and we got a 6-hour delay.

[pcur]

It's happening all over the US with SW right now.  Weather and Max8 are causing disruptions.  I've had it happen in DTW and OAK in the last month.

 

I'm starting to look at flights that have long layovers as insurance against their delays.  Also, any nonstops I can find, like OAK-HOU.

[waterbug123]

On 7/5/2019 at 5:37 PM, DShock said:

Does SW ever leave FLL on time anymore?  Recently had flight scheduled for 12:20, disembarked, got to airport by 10:00 to find our flight delayed by 6 hours!  They said it was a combination of weather,  Max 8, and crew.  We had same thing happen out of Tampa.   Anyone else having issues getting to and from FLL on time on SW?

 

Weather has been a major issue on the east coast several times in the past couple of weeks, causing major delays; I was supposed to fly out of FLL on Sunday evening at 7:00pm.  Flight didn't end up leaving til 11:30.  I was rebooked for yesterday, as I an hour or two into the delay I would have already missed my connection at ATL which was the last flight out that evening to my final destination.  Flight yesterday was delayed as well due to weather, and my 2 hour layover at ATL turned into about 10 minutes....literally ran to my connecting gate and barely made it.

 

Beyond weather, WN is having schedule issues due to the MAX aircraft being out of service.  And beyond that, FLL specifically is having constant delays due to runway work....they are down to one runway and it is causing additional delays for all airlines.  Combine the 3...weather, MAX and FLL runway issues and you have a perfect storm for delays.

[CruiseDigits]

Runway work at FLL is good to know!  Here is a third party article with additional information:

 

https://miami.cbslocal.com/2019/06/20/runway-workabilitation-project-underway-at-fort-lauderdale-hollywood-international-airport/

[ducklite]

I flew WN from FLL to MSY a couple of months ago and the flight was on time.  

Leaving MSY to LAX I was significantly delayed, but so were flights on all major carriers due to major storms affecting much of the Midwest, particularly Houston and Dallas.

[slidergirl]

Look at the weather across the US and you can just see why everyone has delays.  Summer storms in the South can wreak havoc with flights.  Winter storms in the North can wreck havoc with flights.  Unless your physical plane is starting from your airport, you are always subject to delays due to something at another airport.  Crew issues come up when that flight can't get out from the other airport on time and the crew will time out.   

One of the reasons I don't mind having a longish connection time.   

[Zach1213]

18 hours ago, slidergirl said:

Look at the weather across the US and you can just see why everyone has delays.  Summer storms in the South can wreak havoc with flights.  Winter storms in the North can wreck havoc with flights.  Unless your physical plane is starting from your airport, you are always subject to delays due to something at another airport.  Crew issues come up when that flight can't get out from the other airport on time and the crew will time out.   

 

 

Heck, it's even more than that...even if your physical aircraft is starting at your airport that morning, it may not make it the night before because of weather somewhere else. And in a smaller airport, where sometimes the same crew flies the plane in the evening before and out the next morning, any big delay coming in the night before can leave to delays getting out in the morning due to rest requirements...definitely something that I have encountered.

[waterbug123]

On 7/11/2019 at 2:47 PM, slidergirl said:

 Unless your physical plane is starting from your airport, you are always subject to delays

 

Even if the plane is there, you can still have delays.  See below...

 

22 hours ago, Zach1213 said:

 

Heck, it's even more than that...even if your physical aircraft is starting at your airport that morning, it may not make it the night before because of weather somewhere else. And in a smaller airport, where sometimes the same crew flies the plane in the evening before and out the next morning, any big delay coming in the night before can leave to delays getting out in the morning due to rest requirements...definitely something that I have encountered.

 

Exactly.  I recall a few years ago I had an early morning flight out of FLL.  Plane was there and crew was there....but the crew had arrived late the night before due to weather somewhere else.  My flight was delayed due to the mandatory crew rest rules...the crew couldn't legally fly until something like 2 hours after the flight was originally scheduled.  I'm sure people were griping and assuming Delta was lying when told it was weather-related; all they knew was that it was a beautiful morning in Ft. Lauderdale so how in the world could the delay be caused by weather?!

[goldiegaylee]

Last Aug. my family booked a direct flight from Baltimore to Tampa , 2 hours on SW airlines.  After 1 weather delay and 1 mechanical delay and long lay over in Atlanta, they arrived 36 hours later ! Stuff happens !

[scottbee]

On 7/5/2019 at 2:37 PM, DShock said:

Does SW ever leave FLL on time anymore? 

 

In these forums, you'll much more likely see Southwest Airlines written as WN as that's their official IATA code; and all of your ticketing will show WN as the flight number.

 

SW is actually the code for Air Namibia 
 

[FlyerTalker]

SW in all its glory.

 

[Zach1213]

46 minutes ago, FlyerTalker said:

SW in all its glory.

 

 

As a proud Namibian, I would say this is more its glory