NEWS: Southwest Airlines Makes Controversial CHANGE to Its Open Seating Policy

We love to travel, and that means we spend a lot of time at the airport!

For those who are like us, you’re probably constantly looking for the best deals on flights, and you’ve definitely got a preferred airline for when you travel. If that preferred choice is Southwest Airlines, then we’ve got some BIG news you need to know about!

Southwest Airlines just announced some major changes coming up that they hope will improve the customer experience. These changes include updates to seating, flight offerings, and leadership in the company.

First up, perhaps the most notable update is a change to seating for Southwest. After conducting extensive research, Southwest has decided to assign seats and offer premium seating options on all flights. Previously, the airline had been known for its open seating model, but recent polls show that 80% of Southwest customers, and 86% of potential customers, prefer an assigned seat.

In addition to the seat assignments, Southwest plans to offer a “premium, extended legroom portion of the cabin that research shows many Customers strongly prefer.”

The second major change from Southwest is that the company will now be offering red-eye flights. “Booking on initial routes is available today through Southwest.com, with the first overnight flights landing on Valentine’s Day 2025 in five initial nonstop markets: Las Vegas to Baltimore and Orlando; Los Angeles to Baltimore and Nashville; and Phoenix to Baltimore.”

This is expected to provide incremental revenue and cost savings, allowing Southwest to fund additional capacity in the coming years.

Finally, the company is also moving Ryan Green to the role of Executive Vice President of Commercial Transformation. Green will lead the development and rollout of these and other commercial initiatives already underway.