Southwest Airlines sets a date, plan for the end of open seating

Southwest Airlines Passengers will fly Assigned seats For the first time on 27 January, the carrier told CNBC. Customers can start purchasing tickets with the prescribed seats on 29 July.

This step ends over half a century Open On the airline, a policy that has separated it from rivals for decades – with two free Checked bagThere are both things Changing As the leader of the southwest looks for new revenue currents to keep it with the leader of the southwest More profitable rival,

Southwest said in March that its initiative would be $ 800 million in earnings before interest and taxes this year and $ 1.7 billion in 2026.

The airline announced earlier that it will happen Ending It had an open seating place a year ago, but a date was not yet determined.

Changes are part of the large -scale overhaul of its business model on a large scale of South -West. In March, the carrier also said that it will start charging many customers to check the bag and Announced The new fare types in this spring. Top level customers are exempted from many new restrictions and charges.

Southwest used computer models and live tests to ensure that new policies would not slow down boarding and the aircraft earning money would get back quickly.

“We wanted to make sure, as we have designed a boarding construction, which is well added with that kind of partner seating, that we were adaptation of efficiency, but also the second priority: with ensuring that we are taking care of our most loyal customers, so the members of the Tier, card holders and customers who buy our preliminary products,” Stephani Shafan Fares and ancillrary told products.

Come on January 27, the identity-boarding line of the open-seated policy, setting an alarm to secure a space in ABC groups, a large stanchion that shut down boarding order and an on-board scramble for a favorite seat.

All this will be replaced by eight boarding groups based on seat selection, status and other factors. The most loyal and the largest spending will be found first, but the seat will determine the position of boarding. Here’s the order:

• The first two groups will include the top levels and top classes of the elite flyers.
• Through eight, groups will be based on their seat space for three “choice” and “basic” tikthalders.
• Credit card holders and members of the rapid rewards credit card will not do later compared to Group 5.

There will be two queues.

The airline did not disclose prices for seat assignments as an add-on fee, which may vary on rival airlines, depending on the route and demand. Some seats will depend on the type of reaches fare, and will sell southwest standard seats, preferred seats and additional-legroom seats.

Southwest is busy configuring his again Boing Aircraft to include additional-lgroom seating. A spokesperson said that about 200 aircraft are complete, or about 25% fleet, a spokesman said. While those seats are not yet on sale, the airline is selling boarding first to customers before its flight, which will increase the chances of getting additional-legend seats.

South -West customers have shown that sitting together is a priority, Shafer Modi told CNBC, while admitting that it would look different with the new boarding process.

“I think if the family wants a sense of control, then they have optionalism to take their seats … our existing products we are selling,” he said. “We will try our best to ensure that families are seated together, whether they buy tickets.”