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Airways say they exist to move you, pamper you and, sure, love you. And I exist to inform you this is not fully true.
Nowadays, certainly, airways exist to earn cash for senior executives — and hey, possibly pilots — in addition to shareholders. And the best way they do it’s by supplying you with as little as they will get away with.
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Often, after all, they attempt to do some good. Who cannot be transported by the likes of American Airways and United immediately discovering technological methods for folks to take a seat with their kids with out having to pay further?
And now one other airline is experimenting with one thing so passenger-friendly that I can barely avert my eyes. Or shut down my ears. You see, Southwest Airways is not resting on its laurels. You would possibly observe that, after its Christmas debacle, it has not a leaf to relaxation on.
However the airline is plowing ahead, dedicating its ingenuity towards getting you there a bit of extra rapidly. Certainly, Southwest is conducting experiments that will boggle your thoughts and switch your ears into vessels of disbelief.
As The Wall Avenue Journal reported, the airline is shocking passengers on the very busy Atlanta airport with ingenious touches. Passengers know these touches are ingenious as a result of there is a huge signal that claims: “Innovation Zone.”
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Your creativeness is already working amok, I really feel. Is Southwest making its seats 5 inches wider? Is the airline giving free ice cream on each journey? Is Southwest even ensuring its Wi-Fi works?
Oh, it isn’t fairly any of these issues.
For a begin, there are posters explaining the airline’s seat coverage — first come, first served-ish. Fairly progressive, that. Then there are the video displays that present essential data, dynamically offered.
There’s even “a roving worker with a cell gadget [who] additionally checks oversize baggage or registers pets lengthy earlier than boarding begins.” However this all sounds fairly mundane. That is as a result of I have been saving the large one for the very subsequent sentence.
Southwest goes to play loud music as you slowly stagger down the jet bridge. There, wasn’t that value ready for? Music blaring in your ears as you stand there, questioning why the road to get on the airplane is not shifting any sooner.
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Wait, what is that this music purported to do? Properly, Southwest’s analysis reveals that while you play fast-tempo music at folks, they transfer extra rapidly.
To get away from the music, maybe?
Oh, I do not know. However the airline has three musical settings: EDM, hiphop, and what The Wall Avenue Journal describes as “children’ music.” Which is probably going one thing from the 70s. Or the theme tune to Dumbo, I suppose. It is all being performed on moveable audio system, certainly one of expertise’s nice innovations.
Please keep in mind that, despite the fact that it seems Southwest is taking part in along with your psyche, that is all being carried out in your profit. If the airplane is rotated extra rapidly, you allow extra rapidly and Southwest will immediately regain a status for being sprightly — which suggests you may love Southwest once more.
There’s, although, one different facet. If Southwest can flip its planes round extra rapidly, it might probably fly them extra typically and earn more money.
However that is simply an incidental profit, you perceive.
Southwest desires to make you content, by interesting to your dancing ft and your very delicate ears.