First Southwest flight since the switch to assigned seating and honestly… it felt bizarre.
DCA to Kansas City. Maybe 50 people on the whole plane. I’m in 3A, extra legroom. There’s a disabled elderly woman a couple rows back on the other side. First two rows completely empty.
Everyone else? Packed into the back.
I mean literally no one seated through most of the cabin until the last five or six rows, and those rows were completely full. Middle seats taken. All clustered together. And the FA made the “please sit in your assigned seat” announcement at least four times.
It was surreal. I almost felt embarrassed sitting up front with all that space while the back looked crammed. It would have made zero difference to me if people spread out.
And when people say it’s about weight and balance… I’m not buying it. This didn’t look like balance. It looked like policy over common sense.
It felt awkward, eerie, and honestly not a great look.
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