Southwest Airlines eyes long-haul flights in strategic overhaul

By Rajesh Kumar Singh

CHICAGO (GWN) – Southwest Airlines CEO Bob Jordan said on Thursday the company is trying at long-haul worldwide flights and premium airport lounges as half of its turnaround strategy.

Jordan said while the company could have to look at a wide-body plane for long-haul worldwide service, it may use a “more risk-tolerant” method at first and select a slim physique to serve those routes.

The Dallas-based service, which operates largely home flights with a fleet of Boeing 737 jets, has been struggling to discover its footing after the COVID-19 pandemic. Its lackluster earnings have fueled strain to revamp its business model.

It has begun charging prospects for checked luggage, ending a free coverage. It has also rolled out a new basic-economy fare and would change to a new assigned seat coverage in January, changing its earlier open seating model.

In the past, Jordan has talked of the company’s aspirations to launch flights to Europe. Industry specialists say a lack of long-haul worldwide flights limits Southwest’s appeal to prospects and has disadvantaged the airline of a high-margin income stream.

Since February, Southwest has launched partnerships with international carriers Icelandair, China Airlines, and EVA Air to broaden its community. The company has said it’s exploring new partnerships from all elements of the globe.

But Jordan said the company desires to serve long-haul worldwide routes itself. “We want to serve those destinations as well,” he told a Morgan Stanley convention, including the plans have been still in the initial phases.

Southwest once boasted a file 47 consecutive years of revenue prior to the pandemic. Since then, it has struggled to regain sustained profitability. Its margins at the moment pale in comparability with those of rivals Delta and United Airlines.

Many of Southwest’s latest pivots are aimed at wooing high-spending vacationers. Jordan said the company ends up shedding prospects to other carriers because it at the moment doesn’t fly to locations like London or have premium airport lounges.

He said the lounges are also anticipated to drive up the company’s loyalty income as they’d make its co-branded credit playing cards more engaging to prospects.

“If we’re going to continue to drive relevance, even as the largest domestic carrier, we’ve got to continue to meet the needs of our customers,” Jordan said.

(Reporting by Rajesh Kumar Singh, Editing by Franklin Paul and Aurora Ellis)