Is Southwest Doing Away With Its 'Pick-your-seat' Method? The Airline's CEO Hints at Change

It's not often that you hear travelers sing the praises of a regional jet, but that might be about to change aboard Delta Air Lines.

Soaring temperatures are poised to make traveling around the world more challenging. But is climate change already impacting travel? And how is the industry responding?

Frontier is looking to award 10 lucky winners with four round-trip flights — and is throwing in a special flower bouquet to celebrate Mother's Day. Each winner of the airline's "Flights and Flowers" contest will receive four round-trip tickets to be used within Frontier’s network, as well as a $100 bouquet from popular flower delivery service Teleflora.

April was another busy month for airline network planners — both at home and abroad.

Last week, Southwest’s CEO Bob Jordan ignited a flurry of headlines when he suggested that the struggling airline could make changes to some of its long-standing policies in an attempt to increase ancillary revenue.

Southwest Airlines' settlement terms with the Department of Transportation (DOT) are kicking in — leading to future customers receiving compensation if they experience a significant flight delay. As part of the settlement sparked from the airline’s 2022 holiday meltdown, Southwest has agreed to award $75 or more in transferrable vouchers to travelers who reach their destination at least three hours late due to an airline-caused disruption or cancellation, according to the DOT.

When Southwest Airlines reported larger than expected financial losses in its most recent quarterly earnings call on April 25,the airline also announced that it will be cutting service to four airports airports as of August 4, 2024. Additionally, Southwest is planning to reduce capacity at two other major destinations. The goal of these cuts is to “improve unit revenue performance and operating margin,” according to the earnings call. The airline has not ruled out further cuts to its network, adding to the uncertainty plaguing the airline industry in recent months.

Alaska Airlines is launching two new routes from its West Coast hubs and bringing back another it tried out last summer — but full time.

A summer or fall getaway just got cheaper.  Frontier Airlines' “1 Million Seats" fare sale is underway with deals starting at $19. The promotion ends on Monday April 29 and offers deals to many popular destinations in Frontier’s network including Atlanta, Austin, New York, Orlando, and more.  While the fare sale may provide deep discounts, there are several restrictions on when passengers can actually use the tickets. The sale applies to flights on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays from May 10 through June 30 and then again from August 15 through October 31. International destinations, Florida destinations, and Las Vegas have additional booking restrictions.

American Airlines said Friday it would reduce some of its international routes during the second half of the year and early into 2025 because of ongoing Boeing 787 Dreamliner delays. 

Alaska Airlines will expand its presence in southern California this fall with several new routes from San Diego and Los Angeles.

Southwest Airlines is considering making major changes to its seating process.