The old system rewarded effort. If you were disciplined about checking in right at T-24, you could usually land a solid seat without paying extra. That felt fair to a lot of people who weren’t A-List but were consistent.
Now it’s basically pay to sit where you want, and boarding group doesn’t even fully solve overhead space anymore. Paying $78 and still ending up in Group 8 with no bin space would annoy me too.
For people flying 15–20 times a year, not quite elite but very loyal, Southwest used to be perfect. Simple, predictable, MDW over ORD, no games.
Once it starts feeling like you’re paying base fare plus seat fees plus still fighting for bins, the value equation changes fast. At that point Delta or United out of ORD starts looking less painful.
Sounds like for your travel pattern, the old Southwest fit better than the new one.
0