Bob Jordan travel tips

Southwest Airlines will start assigning seats to passengers, ending its longstanding policy of allowing passengers to pick their seats once they have boarded, the airline said on Thursday.

Good morning from Skift. It’s Wednesday, September 4, and here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.

Elliott Investment Management now owns 10% of common stock in Southwest Airlines, crossing the threshold to hold a special meeting.

Southwest Airlines’ activist investor is ramping up the pressure on the carrier’s leadership team. Late on Tuesday, Elliott Investment Management published a list of ten candidates that it wants to see on Southwest’s board. It said this followed a “months-long global search.”

As the aviation industry navigates and prepares for future growth, two events must be on every aviation professional’s calendar: Skift Global Forum in New York City (September 17-19) and the Skift Aviation Forum in Dallas (November 12). These forums present invaluable opportunities to gain insights from top industry leaders. Here is a snapshot of just a few of the leaders who will be taking the stage at each event:

Whether it’s something you “luv” or hate, the absence of assigned seats on Southwest Airlines has become a decades-long fixture. However, the more than 50-year-old legacy of open seating for the Dallas-based carrier will soon end.

Southwest Airlines is ditching open seating, one of the hallmarks of its brand over the last half-century. Southwest is moving forward with plans to add assigned seating, the airline announced Thursday. It's also planning to add extra-legroom seats to its cabin for the first time.

Southwest reported a major decline in its profits for the second quarter as it announced that it will roll out premium seating in a bid to boost its declining revenues. 

Southwest Airlines announced a radical shake-up of its decades-old business model on Thursday. The low-cost carrier is transforming its boarding policy and adding premium seating in an effort to stay relevant to changing consumer preferences.

During United’s second-quarter earnings call on Thursday, chief commercial officer Andrew Nocella declared that low-margin rivals have “largely run their course.” 

Southwest Airlines announced Monday it is adding longtime airline executive and IndiGo co-founder Rakesh Gangwal to its board of directors. 

Making money in the airline industry has never been easy.

Good morning from Skift. It’s Thursday, June 27, and here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today. 

Activist investor Elliott Investment Management slammed Southwest on its weaker second-quarter financial outlook on Wednesday. 

Southwest Airlines has cut its revenue guidance for the current quarter. On Wednesday morning, the low-cost carrier said it now expects operating revenue per available seat mile (RASM) to be down 4% to 4.5% for the quarter. Its prior guidance forecast a drop of 1.5% to 3.5%.

American Airlines is pausing pilot hiring as it reevaluates its growth plans for the year. The carrier said it would temporarily pause new pilot hiring in September, October and November. 

Good morning from Skift. It’s Thursday, June 13, 2024. Here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.

Southwest CEO Bob Jordan said he doesn’t plan to resign following activist fund Elliott Investment Management’s calls for a major leadership change at the airline, according to a report from Reuters. 

The writing was on the wall, but now it's official: Southwest Airlines is making more adjustments to its network, with an emphasis on Atlanta.

Southwest Airlines is doubling down on its strategy after Elliott Investment Management, an activist fund, took a $2 billion stake in the company. 

Elliott Investment Management, an activist fund, has built a nearly $2 billion stake in Southwest Airlines, The Wall Street Journal reported — citing sources.