Midwest by Southwest

Yesterday was the day for found money!  I found $7 in singles in a jacket pocket and, just when Sweet Man and I are anticipating another $300+ for flights to visit his parents (Sweet Man’s mother is very sick with cancer right now), a $150 Southwest airlines voucher arrived in yesterday’s mail.  The voucher accompanied one of the nicest letters I’ve ever received, apologizing for 2.5 hours spent on the runway after landing in Detroit, waiting for a gate.

This was absolutely not Southwest’s fault.  There was nothing they could have done to prevent it.  Our flight left on time and arrived early.  It just so happened that, while we were in the air, three nearby airports closed completely because of snowstorms.  Any flight scheduled to land at those airports was diverted to Detroit, the nearest airport that was still accepting flights for landing.  The Detroit airport was not prepared for the extra two airports’ worth of holiday traffic.  

It seemed that most of the people understood the situation and made the best of it.  One man had a guitar and had everyone on the plane singing Christmas carols to remember the spirit of the season (and avoid mutiny).  If anyone should get the voucher, it’s him.  I don’t his name, but I did take a photo with my iPhone.  I’m not sure anyone would have believed the part about singing carols while waiting on a runway otherwise.

$150 may not seem like much to you, but it’s a huge gesture for something Southwest could not control.  $150 is extremely helpful to us right now, when we may have to travel more frequently to see a sick family member.  

So – I’ll just add this post to my already long list of accolades for Southwest.  When I moved to San Francisco, for instance, one of my four bags was delayed.  Southwest knew where it was; it was on the next flight to San Francisco.  Southwest found me in the baggage claim area (they were holding my name on a piece of paper, like a driving service would) and TOLD ME it was late, which prevented frustration at my not seeing it.  For a delayed bag – not a LOST bag, mind you, just a delayed one – they offered me a $250 voucher.  

I also use the Southwest Visa which, due to the $14,000+ I put on credit cards last year, results in my getting a free Southwest roundtrip anywhere in the U.S. once each year, purely from credit card points.  This kind of reward is definitely part of why I put so much on that credit card: The points incentive is working!  But – it only works because I genuinely enjoy flying with Southwest, and all the nice folks I meet on their planes have the same kind of praise I do.