Latest news with #assignedseating
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Southwest Airlines announces start date for assigned seating
The end of an era is official for Southwest Airlines passengers. On Monday, the airline announced a start date for its new assigned seating, which will bring the airline's longstanding open-seat boarding tradition to an end. For flights beginning on January 27, 2026, passengers will have options for seat selection at the time of booking, Southwest said in its announcement. 'Our Customers want more choice and greater control over their travel experience,' said Tony Roach, Southwest executive vice president of customer and brand, in a news release. 'Assigned seating unlocks new opportunities for our Customers — including the ability to select Extra Legroom seats — and removes the uncertainty of not knowing where they will sit in the cabin,' Roach said. Various fare bundles will offer some options for seat selection during booking. Different types of seats — Extra Legroom, Preferred and Standard — will also appear as part of those bundles. The assigned-seat era will also usher in a new group-based boarding process. Extra Legroom seats will have priority in boarding Groups 1-2. Premium fares and loyalty program members and credit cardholders will board earlier in the process. Details are available on the airline's website. The airline announced its plans to end its free-for-all seating arrangement last summer. The change allows the low-fare carrier to charge a premium for some of the seats on its planes to better compete with legacy carriers American Airlines, United Airlines and Delta Air Lines. Those airlines generate much of their revenue by charging more for premium seating. CNN's Chris Isidore contributed to this report. Solve the daily Crossword
CNN
a day ago
- Business
- CNN
Southwest Airlines announces start date for assigned seating
The end of an era is official for Southwest Airlines passengers. On Monday, the airline announced a start date for its new assigned seating, which will bring the airline's longstanding open-seat boarding tradition to an end. For flights beginning on January 27, 2026, passengers will have options for seat selection at the time of booking, Southwest said in its announcement. 'Our Customers want more choice and greater control over their travel experience,' said Tony Roach, Southwest executive vice president of customer and brand, in a news release. 'Assigned seating unlocks new opportunities for our Customers — including the ability to select Extra Legroom seats — and removes the uncertainty of not knowing where they will sit in the cabin,' Roach said. Various fare bundles will offer some options for seat selection during booking. Different types of seats — Extra Legroom, Preferred and Standard — will also appear as part of those bundles. The assigned-seat era will also usher in a new group-based boarding process. Extra Legroom seats will have priority in boarding Groups 1-2. Premium fares and loyalty program members and credit cardholders will board earlier in the process. Details are available on the airline's website. The airline announced its plans to end its free-for-all seating arrangement last summer. The change allows the low-fare carrier to charge a premium for some of the seats on its planes to better compete with legacy carriers American Airlines, United Airlines and Delta Air Lines. Those airlines generate much of their revenue by charging more for premium seating. CNN's Chris Isidore contributed to this report.
Fast Company
a day ago
- Business
- Fast Company
Southwest Airlines open seating is ending: Here's what the new 8-group boarding process will look like
Around this time last year, Southwest Airlines announced that it would scrap its signature open-seating model in favor of a more traditional assigned seating system, chipping away at its identity as a 'quirky' airline to better compete with rivals like Delta Air Lines and American Airlines. A year later, Southwest is finally gearing up to sell its first assigned seat tickets. Over the past few months, Southwest has been slowly shedding the features that once made its brand stand out. The airline built its name around its uniquely standardized open-seating boarding system, which meant that every customer flew in the same kind of seat without any divisions by price tier. Last July, though, the airline announced that it would implement new premium features (like seats with expanded legroom) and assigned seating. This March, Southwest killed its 'bags fly free' policy, which offered every flier two free checked bags. And, in April, the airline overhauled its fare bundles to include more expensive fares with better amenities. Southwest expects these new policies, among others, to add $800 million to earnings before interest and taxes this year and $1.7 billion in 2026. Starting on July 29, Southwest will begin selling its new assigned seat tickets, and planes with the updated seating will take to the skies on January 27, 2026. Now, Southwest is sharing more details about how its boarding process is set to change. Less time pressure, but a more segmented cabin Southwest's current open-seating boarding process is simple: Passengers line up behind stanchions based on their boarding group (labeled by letters A-C) and then pick an available seat once they're on board the plane. In an investor's call last July, Southwest's executive vice president Ryan Green noted that this process is 'relatively calm,' but can create time pressure once customers are inside the cabin. Some of that pressure will be alleviated under this new system, with the trade-off being that the cabin will now be segmented into standard and premium seating sections. In an interview with CNBC, Southwest executives shared that the new boarding system was designed using computer models and live testing to ensure that the assigned seating wouldn't slow the process down. 'We wanted to make sure that, as we designed a boarding construct that paired well with assigned seating, we were optimizing for efficiency, but also the second priority: making sure that we're taking care of our most loyal customers,' Stephanie Shafer Modi, managing director of fares and ancillary products at Southwest, told CNBC. '[That includes] tier members, cardholders, and customers who buy our most premium products.' An eight-group boarding system The updated boarding system reflects Southwest's increasing focus on high-paying passengers. Under the new parameters, customers will be prompted to choose a fare bundle when they first purchase a ticket, and will receive a letter and a seat number when they check in online—similar to the current system. However, once they arrive at the airport, passengers will now be separated into two lines and eight different boarding groups: The first two groups to board will include the top tiers of elite frequent fliers, and those with the top classes of tickets (Choice Extra and Choice Plus). Groups three through eight will be for 'Choice' and 'Basic' ticket holders, depending on their seat location. Credit card holders and Rapid Rewards credit card members will board no later than Group 5. Despite the changes, Green said last July, 'We expect our future boarding process to feel very familiar and uniquely Southwest.'
CNN
a day ago
- Business
- CNN
Southwest Airlines announces start date for assigned seating
The end of an era is official for Southwest Airlines passengers. On Monday, the airline announced a start date for its new assigned seating, which will bring the airline's longstanding open-seat boarding tradition to an end. For flights beginning on January 27, 2026, passengers will have options for seat selection at the time of booking, Southwest said in its announcement. 'Our Customers want more choice and greater control over their travel experience,' said Tony Roach, Southwest executive vice president of customer and brand, in a news release. 'Assigned seating unlocks new opportunities for our Customers — including the ability to select Extra Legroom seats — and removes the uncertainty of not knowing where they will sit in the cabin,' Roach said. Various fare bundles will offer some options for seat selection during booking. Different types of seats — Extra Legroom, Preferred and Standard — will also appear as part of those bundles. The assigned-seat era will also usher in a new group-based boarding process. Extra Legroom seats will have priority in boarding Groups 1-2. Premium fares and loyalty program members and credit cardholders will board earlier in the process. Details are available on the airline's website. The airline announced its plans to end its free-for-all seating arrangement last summer. The change allows the low-fare carrier to charge a premium for some of the seats on its planes to better compete with legacy carriers American Airlines, United Airlines and Delta Air Lines. Those airlines generate much of their revenue by charging more for premium seating. CNN's Chris Isidore contributed to this report.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Here's when assigned seats are coming to Southwest — and so are new fees
Southwest Airlines announced Monday it will move to assigned seating on Jan. 27, 2026. The airline is not currently accepting reservations past Jan. 26. Previously, the airline operated on a first-come, first-seated model, where passengers could select any open seat once they boarded the airplane. Southwest has been undergoing a transformation over the last year or so, becoming more similar to other airlines in the U.S. with bundled fares, checked bag fees, a plan for more premium seating and other changes. 'Our customers want more choice and greater control over their travel experience,' Tony Roach, executive vice president of customer and brand at Southwest Airlines said in a statement. 'Assigned seating unlocks new opportunities for our customers – including the ability to select Extra Legroom seats – and removes the uncertainty of not knowing where they will sit in the cabin. This is an important step in our evolution, and we're excited to pair these enhancements with our legendary customer service.' Once the swap happens, Southwest will also move to group-based boarding, with Rapid Rewards elites and premium ticketholders boarding earliest in the process. Southwest's new fare bundles will include a basic economy option that does not allow customers to choose their seats before check-in. The airline moved away from its previous two free checked bags policy in May, and now charges a fee to check luggage on new reservations, beginning at $35 for the first suitcase. Zach Wichter is a travel reporter and writes the Cruising Altitude column for USA TODAY. He is based in New York and you can reach him at zwichter@ This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Southwest's biggest change ever: No more first-come, first-seated
