Southwest changes boarding; will have assigned seating

A major change is coming for Southwest passengers, and it’s something that has been around for more than 50 years.

The airline has been known for open seating for a half-century, allowing passengers to sit nearly wherever they want. Now, it will have assigned seating and offer “premium seating options,” the company announced Thursday.

The change is being made “to meet evolving Customer preferences and increase revenue opportunities.”

“The airline has been known for its unique open seating model for more than 50 years, but preferences have evolved with more Customers taking longer flights where a seat assignment is preferred,” Southwest said in the announcement.

Southwest announced several changes “designed to elevate the Customer experience, improve financial performance, and drive Shareholder value.”

In addition to becoming like all other airlines with assigned seating, Southwest will also change how it boards flights and will roll out redeye flights.

Assigned and premium seating, which includes extended legroom, will be available on all flights. Southwest is also working on “a refreshed cabin design” that includes new seats the company said are more comfortable.

“Moving to assigned seating and offering premium legroom options will be a transformational change that cuts across almost all aspects of the Company,” Southwest President, CEO and Vice Chairman of the Board, Bob Jordan said. “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. We are excited to incorporate Customer and Employee feedback to design a unique experience that only Southwest can deliver. We have been building purposefully to this change as part of a comprehensive upgrade to the Southwest experience as we focus on Customer expectations – and it will unlock new sources of revenue consistent with our laser focus on delivering improved financial performance.”

With the new seating procedure, the first redeye flight will land on Feb. 14 at five nonstop routes: Las Vegas to Baltimore, Las Vegas to Orlando, Los Angeles to Baltimore, Los Angeles to Nashville, and Phoenix to Baltimore. Additional routes will be introduced after the first phase.

Passengers have already seen some upgrades to the fleet of planes, including faster WiFi, charging ports at the seats and larger overhead bins.

There was no mention of the airline’s “Bags Fly Free” policy where passengers’ first two checked bags up to 50 pounds each are not charged. Oversized bags or extra baggage cost $125 each. Overweight bags are $100 for bags 51 to 70 pounds or $125 for 71 to 100 pounds.

News of the change comes just as Southwest announced in the second quarter it had posted higher revenue but lower profits, The Associated Press reported.

Higher costs for labor, fuel and other expenses have hit all airlines, cutting into profits. Still, Southwest made $367 million in the second quarter, which was a 46% drop from last year, the AP reported.

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