Here’s when Southwest Airlines’ assigned seating plan will begin

Southwest Airlines will initiate its assigned seating program in 2026 and will begin selling tickets with assigned seats in the second half of next year.

The company also plans a new vacation packaging program called “Getaways by Southwest” that is expected to bring additional leisure travelers to Las Vegas. Operations at Harry Reid International Airport, where Southwest is the busiest commercial air carrier, will be expanded with new red-eye flights that include Las Vegas as one of its centerpiece destinations.

The Dallas-based airline provided new details of its “Southwest. Even Better” initiative in a three-hour investor meeting at the airline’s headquarters.

In changes designed to increase profitability, Southwest said it would continue to offer its popular “bags fly free” program and won’t alter its Rapid Rewards loyalty program.

“What we’ll share today is the most transformational plan we have ever had, but it’s very intentional,” Southwest CEO Bob Jordan said. “It builds on our strong foundation, our business model, and our culture. The plan includes a robust set of tactical and strategic initiatives and includes elements that are uniquely available only to Southwest Airlines. The plan is capital efficient and supports achieving our financial goal of (return on investment capital) well above our cost of capital by 2027.”

Southwest has been under pressure to improve its financial performance by one of its largest shareholders, West Palm Beach, Florida-based Elliott Investment Management, which wants a majority position on the company’s board of directors and has called for the resignation of Jordan and Executive Chairman Gary Kelly, the airline’s former CEO. Elliott also has tried to force a special board meeting to press its views.

While Kelly has said he will retire from his board role next year, Jordan has vowed to stay on and guide the “Southwest. Even better” initiative.

Assigned seats

The biggest change on the horizon for Southwest customers is the new assigned seat policy which the company will begin selling in the second half of 2025 and implement in the first half of 2026.

Executives said research led them to make the switch from open seating, which has been in effect since the airline began flying in 1967. The airline will be able to generate new revenue by offering premium seating with extra legroom.

The airline will remove one row of seats on some planes to accommodate the extra legroom. On its larger Boeing 737-800 and MAX 8 planes, 68 of the 175 seats will have extra room. On Boeing 737-700 and MAX 7 planes, two to six seats will be lost. On the 737-700 planes, there will be 40 of 137 seats with extra room and on the MAX 7s, 48 of 148 seats.

The boarding process will change when Southwest implements assigned seating. Airline officials said people would continue to line up at airport gate stanchions, but the boarding order would be modified to fill the plane efficiently and passengers will no longer need to log on to secure their place in line 24 hours before flight time.

Red-eye flights

Another change for Las Vegas: more late-night red-eye flights on the schedule.

Southwest will offer up to 33 red-eye flights on 18 planes next year, expanding to up to 50 daily flights on 28 planes by 2027.

Las Vegas will be one of the prime beneficiaries of late flights with this week’s announcement that three Hawaii destinations will have nonstop routes to Reid International. Flights are being added from Honolulu, Kona (on the big island of Hawaii) and Kahalui on Maui to Las Vegas. The airline reported that around 50 markets will benefit from the Hawaii red-eyes with Reid as a transfer point.

Southwest confirmed in July that it would operate red-eye flights from Las Vegas to Orlando, Florida, and Baltimore-Washington International Airport beginning in February.

At the investor session, the airline also announced a stock buyback program to bolster its financial picture.

Contact Richard N. Velotta at rvelotta@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3893. Follow @RickVelotta on X.