Southwest Airlines is in the process of making some significant changes to its identity, ending its longstanding “bags fly free” policy as well as its open seating policy. But as the airline transitions into its new identity, one travel expert has a pretty clear warning.
Earlier this year, Southwest Airlines announced plans to begin charging for checked bags and move to an assigned seating model that allows customers to pay extra to select their seats, which could include premium seats with extra legroom.
The drastic policy changes came as the airline searched for ways to boost its profits, which have been slumping in recent years. But there’s no guarantee it will work.
Southwest Airlines began charging for checked bags back in May, charging customers $35 for the first checked bag and $45 for an additional checked bag. The move ended Southwest’s iconic “bags fly free” policy, which it had stuck to for decades.
The early results from the changes were not great. Customers were not happy, the airline saw an immediate decline in bookings, and the move did not provide an immediate, obvious boost to profits.
Still, Southwest is committed to moving forward with the plan, and it sounds like CEO Bob Jordan is pleased with the early results.
“The revenue contribution from bag fees has exceeded our expectations so far, and we’ve experienced no negative impact to the operation,” Jordan said.
For decades, Southwest Airlines had a democratic, open seating policy on all of its flights, allowing passengers to simply choose any seat on the aircraft after boarding in the order in which they checked in, though the airline eventually allowed some guests to pay to board sooner than others.
Beginning in January of 2026, that’s changing.
Earlier this year, Southwest Airlines officially announced that it would be ending its open-seating policy, moving to an assigned seating model. Now, guests will have to choose between four fare bundles: Basic, Choice, Choice Preferred, and Choice Extra.
Basic passengers will either receive an automatically assigned seat a day before departure or pay extra to select a seat. All other fare types will include seat selection at no extra cost.
The assigned seating model will officially go into effect beginning January 27, 2026.
While Southwest has already made some rather significant changes, the airline is not done evolving yet.
Back in June, CEO Bob Jordan made it clear that Southwest was keeping its options open for future changes.
While he did not specifically indicate what the airline had planned for the future, he mentioned things like international flights and airport lounges – things Southwest’s competitors currently offer, but it has never pursued.
