Southwest Airlines Community

When I bought my tickets from Denver to San Jose Costa Rica they were advertised as non-stop.  On our flight from Denver to San Jose is was non-stop.  However, when we were at the gate in San Jose waiting to board the plane back to Denver there was a brief announcement about a stop in San Antonio TX without any explanation.  When we landed at San Antonio we stopped on an active taxiway and were met by a firetruck and a refueling tanker.  I have also learned that this was because Southwest didn't want to pay the for the fuel in San Jose necessary to make the non-stop flight all the way to Denver.  This resulted in more than an hour delay in our arrival to Denver which was a decision of Southwest Airlines.  In fact, this "cost saving decision" resulted in an action that put the passengers of our flight in an unnecessary risk by adding an additional landing and takeoff as well as an dangerous re-fueling operation as proved by the need for a firetruck during refueling operation.  Firetrucks are not normally needed at normal layovers.  I have been delayed on a flight because of a mechanical issue that necessitated an unplanned refueling stop of a non-stop flight but this was a financial decision of Southwest Airlines that unnecessarily delayed our flight.  In addition to that while we were on the ground in San Antonio we were not permitted to leave our seats and as such I believed that led to one passenger relieving themselves at their seat.  We received no emails or text messages from Southwest about this unplanned stop even though it was evident before the flight that the unplanned stop had been planned by Southwest Airlines.  I can't wait for their response to this false advertising and less than transparent plans of operation. ... View more