After more than 50 years of the most distinctive boarding process in U.S. aviation, Southwest Airlines is finally ending open seating and rolling out assigned seats and a new boarding structure that looks nothing like the airline most of us grew up flying with.
Instead, Southwest is moving to assigned seating and a structured boarding process that looks much more like what you will find at American, Delta, or United, complete with boarding groups numbered 1 through 8 and fare based priority. Digital displays will replace the old gate stanchions, and boarding passes will now show both a seat assignment and a boarding group.
But this is not just a nod to convenience. Assigned seating allows Southwest to introduce premium seating products such as extra legroom seats and preferred forward cabin positions. Under open seating, those products were impossible to monetize. With assigned seats, Southwest can now segment its cabin and generate incremental revenue from customers willing to pay for better placement. It also allows the airline to introduce differentiated fare bundles from Basic to Choice Extra that come with different boarding and seating perks.
A great solo travel tip spotted this week on Live and Let's Fly.
