Senior Early Boarding (2024)

FAQs

Can seniors board a plane early? ›

Request priority boarding to enter the plane in the first group before everyone else, especially if you need help getting to your seat, or help with stowing your carry-on.

Customers who need special assistance and families with children under 2 years old can ask to board early at the gate.

Seniors do not get priority boarding on Southwest. There is priority boarding for customers who have a specific seating need to accommodate their disability, who need assistance in boarding the aircraft or who need help stowing an assistive device.

EarlyBird Check-In guarantees that you will be one of the first passengers to board the plane — for a fee. The cost ranges from $15 to $25 per person, per flight.

Do seniors automatically get PreCheck? No. Anyone who wants to receive PreCheck needs to apply. However, TSA does provide people who are 75 years old or older access to an expedited screening process in the regular screening lines: You can keep your light jacket and shoes on.

Passengers 75 and older can receive some form of expedited screening through risk-based intelligence-driven security that allows TSA to better focus resources on passengers who more likely pose a risk. You may leave on your shoes however; removal of light jackets is required for Advanced Imaging Technology screening.

Preboarding is available prior to general boarding for Customers with disabilities who need a specific seat to accommodate a disability, need assistance boarding the aircraft, or need to stow an assistive device.

Can the air carrier require me to provide proof of my disability? An air carrier must not require any kind of proof as a condition for the provision of transportation, except in some very limited circ*mstances.

Senior Fares apply only to those in the traveling party who are age 65 or over. Southwest Airlines has other discounted fares for those not meeting the above age requirements. Some restrictions and seating limitations may apply.

What is considered a senior when flying? ›

Planning your trip

To find out if you can get a senior discount on your trip, select “Senior 65+” as the traveler when booking your tickets. All prices shown will include the discount if one is available.

Priority preboarding is available for Customers who have a specific seating need to accommodate their disability, need assistance in boarding the aircraft, or who need to stow an assistive device. Customers who are traveling with assistance and emotional support animals qualify for preboarding.

EarlyBird Check-In is included with the purchase of an Anytime fare. NOTE: EarlyBird Check-In should not be purchased (1) for Passengers on the same reservation as an A-List or an A-List Preferred Member as they will receive priority boarding or (2) Unaccompanied Minors since they will preboard the flight.

Along with being automatically included with more expensive seats and airline status, early boarding is often a perk that airlines offer to active military personnel, families with small children, people with disabilities and anyone else who may need additional help entering the plane.

There's no policy against seat saving for FAs to enforce. Southwest allows seat saving, including the saving of multiple seats.

If you're in a wheelchair, have mobility problems, or need extra time to get on the plane, you get priority. ◾ Premium credit card holders: Some credit cards offer early boarding privileges as a benefit. ◾ VIPs.

While senior airfare discounts are not as common as they used to be, some airlines still offer them. The most common is for 10 percent off of the full fare price of a flight, with the age eligibility ranging from 50-65.

The discounted senior citizen flight fares are completely based on the discretion of individual airline, the common criteria they all follow Is that the person travelling must be above the age of 60 and should be able to provide government issued ID confirming their date of birth.

Children between the ages of 5 and 12 travelling alone, domestically or internationally with us, are considered as unaccompanied minors. We adore our youngest travellers. However, to prioritise their safety and comfort, we do not extend our unaccompanied minor services to children under five years.