Southwest Airlines will officially ditch its open-seating policy and begin allowing passengers to pick their seats in advance instead, the airline confirmed Thursday – part of a massive reinvention for the beloved yet beleaguered airline.
Southwest said it will also begin installing extra legroom seats on its planes starting next year, likely for an extra fee. And, for the first time ever, they'll begin operating overnight redeye flights in early 2025 on select routes like Las Vegas (LAS) to Orlando (MCO) and Phoenix (PHX) to Baltimore (BWI).
While big changes are afoot, Southwest executives reassured travelers that its ever-popular “Bags Fly Free” policy – with two checked bags included with every ticket – isn't going anywhere.
“We are not looking to change that policy,” CEO Bob Jordan said on the airline's earnings call Thursday.
But doing away with its first-come, first-served seating model is huge. It might be the biggest change in the Texas-based airline's history. Thursday's announcement is the beginning of the end of an era on one of the United States' most popular and groundbreaking airlines.
More specifics won't come until sometime in September, but here's what we know now.
Southwest to End Open Seating Policy
Southwest hasn't said exactly when the change to assigned seating will take place. But it will spell the end of racing to check in exactly 24 hours before departure, hoping for a prized early boarding position to pick a seat before other passengers get a chance.
The airline said it was driven by customer surveys and feedback: Many flyers want to know exactly where they're sitting in advance – Southwest said 80% of its own customers told them so. And many others who do have been choosing other airlines over booking Southwest, citing the desire for an assigned seat, according to Southwest's research.
“Although our unique open seating model has been a part of Southwest Airlines since our inception, our thoughtful and extensive research makes it clear this is the right choice – at the right time – for our customers, our people, and our shareholders,” Jordan said in a statement.
Southwest executives cited several reasons for the change, from helping guarantee families sit together to generating more revenue in the seat assignment process. But the other factor is how long Southwest's flights are in the modern age. With destinations like the far-flung Hawaiian islands and even all the way down to Aruba or Costa Rica, Southwest is flying further than ever.
“That's a large driver of this,” said Jordan during Thursday's investor call. “When you have a longer flight, passengers have the preference to know where they're sitting.”
Jordan added that while seats will be assigned, the boarding process might not look too different from before. Travelers with Southwest love the “calm and order of our boarding,” he said.
Southwest Will Add Premium, Extra-Legroom Seats
Airlines like Delta and United have been beating the drum about “premium travel” – Americans wan't more space and better service on the plane, and they're willing to pay for it.
Southwest isn't content losing those passengers any more.
Identical seating from back to front is on the way out. Southwest said it plans to convert roughly a third of the cabin on each plane to offer premium, extra legroom seating. Southwest flies more than 800 Boeing 737 planes, so this overhaul will take years to complete.
Southwest did not unveil specifics on how the new cabins would be arranged, but don't expect a full-blown first class cabin you'll find on many other major domestic carriers. Jordan said the plan is to use existing Southwest seats, just with more legroom.
“It will be different than the rest of the cabin, but it won't be a different seat,” he added.
Southwest says its new cabin layout and premium seats will be available for booking in 2025. The specifics of the new cabins will be unveiled at Southwest's investor day in late September.
It won't be alone. Alaska Airlines also recently announced a push for more premium seating, citing plans to add a row of first class and more rows of extra legroom economy options, too. Same goes for JetBlue, which is reportedly adding “Mini Mint” seating to more of its mainland fleet.
Redeye Flights for Sale Now
Among the quirks in Southwest's route planning is its aversion to redeye flights. While competitors like American and United carriers routinely operate overnight flights to get travelers from the West Coast to major hubs out east, Southwest has bucked that trend.
Not anymore.
While overnight flights, also known as redeyes, aren't everyone's favorite, they often come with significant cost savings for the travelers who don't mind them. And they're a convenient way to maximize your time in a destination before flying home.
Perhaps most importantly, these overnight flights will help Southwest connect travelers flying from Hawaii all the way back to the eastern United States. Before, those single-day connections were nearly impossible for most Southwest travelers. This will allow Southwest to schedule Hawaii travelers all the way to their final destination without overnight layovers.
Currently, these redeye fares are on sale starting Feb. 13 from Las Vegas (LAS) to Baltimore (BWI) and Orlando (MCO), Los Angeles (LAX) to Nashville (BNA) and BWI, and from Phoenix (PHX) to BWI.
They are only for sale on Southwest.com as of publication.
Why & What it Means for Southwest
Airlines are generally a monkey-see, monkey-do industry with carriers mimicking each other's every move. But Southwest has prided itself on doing things differently.
Other airlines now charge $35 or more for checked luggage, yet every Southwest ticket still includes two free bags. And long before other carriers did away with change fees, Southwest has offered free change and cancellation on every fare.
But the times for Southwest are changing.
Once a Wall Street darling that posted consistent profits even as other carriers lost money, the airline has been struggling financially in the post-pandemic travel boom. A new activist investor, Elliott Management, recently bought a $2 billion stake in the airline to push for an overhaul – including ousting its CEO.
Southwest previously hinted at major change on the horizon, so this is no surprise. Nor is it the first big move we've seen.
Out of nowhere this spring, Southwest suddenly began appearing on Google Flights. That's a monumental change, too: Previously, flyers could only search for and book Southwest tickets directly on the airline's website.
By opening the doors to Google Flights, it's a massive win for the airline, the flight search engine, and – most importantly – everyday travelers. It gives consumers an instant way to compare prices between airlines, increasing Southwest's exposure with travelers who might forget to check Southwest … if they even knew it was an option. And it'll help travelers get a better deal – even if prices drop after booking thanks to Google Flights Price Alerts.
And with Southwest now suddenly showing up alongside the likes of American, Delta, United, and a growing number of low-cost carriers, it could have some massive ramifications for the entire airline industry and how they all price flights. No longer can Southwest hide that their fares are more or less than the competition, and vice versa. Everyone's baring it all on Google Flights now, and consumers have more fare transparency than ever.
Southwest's expansion into Google Flights was a consequential shift on its own. Paired with this week's news that will make Southwest's in-flight experience closer to its competitors, it could be a turning point for the entire U.S. airline industry.
But it's not all good news. By allowing passengers to pick their seats in advance, Southwest is surely planning to charge for the privilege. And with that core difference in place, it could only be a matter of time before Southwest goes back on its word and rolls out basic economy fares.
Bottom Line
Southwest is doing away with its signature open seating policy, instead announcing plans to assign seats and built out a premium cabin on all of its Boeing 737s in 2025.
Details of Southwest's new premium cabin, seat assignment, and boarding process won't be known until the airline's September investor day, but in the mean time, this announcement makes it clear that Southwest knows it needs to change with the times and look more like its competitors that consistently turn a profit in this ultra-competitive industry.
A welcome change. I fly SW regularly and usually get an upgraded boarding but I’m so frustrated by the number of early boarders, many of whom are scamming the system to get the prime seats without paying. I’d rather pick my seat and pay than endure the stress of SW’s boarding process. .
For us SW cc holders, one of the benefits is 4 free boarding upgrades (positions 1-15) per year. Without that, the $149 annual fee won’t be worth it so I’ll likely drop the card unless they replace the benefit with something good.
I don’t know if there’s many (normal) people who are lamenting the demise of open seating. I rarely fly SW, but have seen people acting like territorial toddlers when it comes to seats, and I welcome SW joining the ranks of modern airlines by assigning seats.
So the main complaint I saw was “scammers” getting to board early and getting “good seats”. Meaning the real reason is because disabled people found a way to fly comfortably and without paying extra to fly. With a few exceptions (bulkhead, exit row) most seats on a southwest flight were pretty equal – but now because people overwhelmingly felt that there was some kind of scam, there will be some big expensive seats that will come at the expense of everyone else, and just like everything else we do in life, we disabled get the privilege of paying more.