A Phoenix entrepreneur has devised a service that helps Southwest Airlines customers avoid sitting in a dreaded middle seat on one of the discount carrier's flights.
The cost of the service, through the Web site www.boardfirst.com, is $5.
Southwest, unlike most airlines, has no reserved seats. Passengers board planes in the order in which they check in, either online if they have an electronic ticket or at the airport, and take any seat they wish. The first 45 to check in get "A" boarding passes, allowing them to board first. The next 45 are in the "B" group, and the rest get "C" passes.
Southwest allows customers to check in online at its Web site 24 hours before a flight's scheduled departure, a change to its procedures adopted last month. Before, passengers had to check in after midnight on the day of the flight.
To use boardfirst.com, passengers register on the Web site at least 48 hours before a flight, and enter their flight information, Southwest confirmation number, and a credit-card number. Exactly 24 hours before the departure time, the Web site checks in for customers and sends an e-mail to let them know they are in the "A" group. The boarding pass can be printed by the passenger, or obtained at the airport.
If the Web site fails to get an "A" pass for a customer, the $5 charge is waived, said Kate Bell of Phoenix, president of boardfirst.com.
A former frequent business traveler, Bell said she dreamed up the idea when she grew weary of staying up until midnight to make sure she got an "A" boarding pass. She began the service in July.
Business fell off briefly when Southwest began allowing check-in 24 hours in advance, but now has picked up again, Bell said. She has only six or seven customers a day now - but that was before she sent out a news release and reporters began calling and writing about the service. Southwest operates 2,800 flights a day, and carries more than 70 million passengers a year.
Southwest has no objection to boardfirst.com provided it does not purport to be a service of the airline, spokeswoman Brandy King said. The Web site includes a disclaimer on each page that says it is not affiliated with any airline.
But King said the airline did not think the service made much sense. "Some of our fares are only $30 or $40," she said, "so why would someone spend $5 to check in?"
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