To recap, on January 27, Southwest Airlines will start using assigned seating for the first time ever. The move is a departure from the airline’s usual boarding procedure. The airline is otherwise scrambling to reconfigure its Boeing planes to add that extra-legroom seating. This modification will make the relatively new passenger seating layout much more comfortable. As a part of this overhaul, Southwest Airlines will create two different queues for boarding. This new policy will increase the efficiency of boarding and improve the customer experience for their most frequent riders.
There’s more than one reason why Southwest Airlines is taking this step. It’s all about reducing its reliance on passenger fares. They’re reacting to a competitive environment ruled by the more profitable incumbents. Company leaders have promised that these changes are the first step in a larger restructuring of the airline’s business model. The airline is considering additional enhancements such as airport lounges, flights to Europe, and the introduction of a premium class to attract more customers.
With the new boarding procedures, Southwest Airlines would do away with its process in favor of eight boarding groups. These cohorts will be defined by fare type, customer type, and/or choice of seat. The airline will have three types of seats – standard, preferred, and extra-legroom. Your ability to choose particular seats is based on your fare class. This allows you to pick and plan according to your priorities and budget.
In fact, nearly 200 aircraft—25% of Southwest’s fleet—have already been retrofitted with the additional legroom seats. This project hopes to bring in $800 million in EBIT this year alone. By 2026, the state’s own projections indicate that it will climb as high as $1.7 billion. Southwest Airlines is doing all of these things and more! This spring, they begin charging customers for checked baggage and rolled out new fare types.
As America’s Family Airline, Southwest Airlines is dedicated to offering value and choice for families flying together.
“I think that if families want that sense of control, they have the optionality to pick their seats through … our existing products that we’re selling. We will try to do our best to make sure that families are seated together no matter how they buy a ticket.” – Stephanie Shafer Modi.
The airline’s surprising move back towards assigned seating demonstrates its focus on walking the tightrope between operational efficiency and customer goodwill.
“We wanted to make sure that, as we designed a boarding construct that sort of paired well with assigned seating, that we were optimizing for efficiency, but also the second priority: balancing that with making sure that we’re taking care of our most loyal customers, so tier members, cardholders and customers who buy our most premium products.” – Stephanie Shafer Modi.
Customers will be able to start buying tickets with assigned seating as of July 29. While specific prices for seat assignments remain undisclosed, these enhancements illustrate Southwest Airlines’ effort to modernize its services and compete more effectively in the airline industry.