Southwest Airlines, first time disappoint!

[Rez Exelon]

You’re right that the gate was probably still being used, but the airport doesn’t control gate assignments, the airline does. The airlines lease the gates from the airport and control which flight goes to which gate.

That part isn't totally accurate. The gates at nearly every major hub airport are shared to some degree. At DFW American runs A&C but B/D/E are shared space. Most hub airports have a split to some degree with certain positions owned and others shared.

 

[El Pablo]

I flew way too much for 8 years doing consulting. Stopped about 5 years ago. Had status with at least two airlines for 7 of those years. Delta and sw gave me by far the least amount of issues. American was awful. That gate issue would happen with any of them and may or may not have been their fault.

I plan on never havin platinum status again.

 

[wawazat]

My decision to drive or fly for work is dependent on the impact to my time with family. If I gain an hour or two with my family by one means over the other, that is what I pick. I would really love to get back to working in an area that is 8 hours or less drive from home.

If you guys really want to have fun trying to navigate flights, fly into one of the small shuttle airports that only get 2-3 scheduled flights per day haha. The biggest travel headaches I have had occurred while trying to get in or out of Casper or Gillette, WY or Canton, OH.

 

[C_Hallbert]

About six years ago, my wife and I traveled to NYC, LaGuardia Airport from DFW for my Mother’s 89th BD. I was 70 y.o. at the time, stooped over with Rheumatoid Disease and walked with a crutch. At security, they wanted me to remove my f’ing shoes???!!! I asked for a chair and the anthropoid, female TSA Entity became visibly annoyed. Lesser primates can become irrational and antagonistic due to various unfathomable reasons. Perhaps it was already plagued with fleas, liver flukes and/or toxoplasmosis? It started jumping up and down and let out a primal alarm call. I think I heard the words, “….Special Screening ….” within it’s tirade of gibberish. My Grandson took a picture of me surrounded by this growing group of obviously hostile creatures. “NO PICTURES ALLOWED!”, one of them howled, “Who took that picture?” He wisely hid his cellular telephone in his pocket and assumed a disinterested expression. Needless to say, I was removed from the line under armed escort and placed in an antechamber where I was forced to strip to my underclothes and subjected to a search with gloved hands and finally an electronic explosives detector. I almost missed the flight. I honorably served this country in the USMC 1966 to 1970 and my community in Pittsburg County, OK for four years as a Reserve Deputy. This kind of treatment is unacceptable, unreasonable and unnecessary. I’ll never fly again. In fact, I would rather be flogged to death for a crime that I didn’t commit than to set foot in another Commercial Airliner.