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It is the end of an era at Southwest Airlines. Customers will no longer be able to choose any open seat when they board the plane. That's something Southwest has been known for since its founding more than 50 years ago. But the airline announced today that it is changing course, as NPR's Joel Rose reports.
JOEL ROSE, BYLINE: When Southwest first lifted off in the 1970s, its unconventional boarding process was part of the pitch.
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HERB KELLEHER: At Southwest Airlines, we want our passengers to spend their time in the air, not on the ground.
ROSE: That's founder Herb Kelleher from a TV commercial in the '70s.
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KELLEHER: Our planes pull into the jetway, board passengers and pull out again in 10 minutes or less. The way we look at it, the quicker you're in the air, the quicker you get where you're going.
ROSE: Five decades later, most Southwest passengers still line up by group at the gate and choose their own seats from whatever is open when they board the plane. Although the turnaround generally takes a lot more than 10 minutes. But now Southwest Airlines says it plans to use assigned seats like other airlines. It's also planning to sell premium seats with extra legroom and to add overnight red-eye flights for the first time starting in February.
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BOB JORDAN: This is what our customers want.
ROSE: That's current CEO Bob Jordan in an interview today with CNBC.
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JORDAN: Eighty percent of customers that fly Southwest today want an assigned seat. Eighty-six percent of customers that don't fly Southwest want an assigned seat, and when a customer defects from Southwest to another competitor, it's the No. 1 reason. So it's the right thing at the right time.
ROSE: Do Southwest's customers agree? We asked passengers in Dallas, where the airline is based, how they feel about the end of open seating.
SHARI EDDINGTON: I kind of like being able to select my own seat.
ROSE: Shari Eddington says she's a longtime Southwest customer.
EDDINGTON: It is a surprise because I feel like that's a part of their brand. As long as bags continue to fly free, I'll be all right (laughter).
ROSE: But Jan deLeeuw of Columbus, Ohio, says she prefers assigned seats.
JAN DELEEUW: I'm always anxious, and that's one last piece of the trip I don't know where I'm going to sit (laughter). So I always like, you know, having a seat assignment.
ROSE: The news about open seating came the same day that Southwest announced a sharp drop in second-quarter profits. The airline is also under pressure from an activist investor, hedge fund Elliott Investment Management, which argues Southwest is underperforming. But CEO Bob Jordan says that's not why this change is happening now.
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JORDAN: I know there are going to be customers who say, I want to stay with open seating. It's a minority. I'm convinced we can win them over.
ROSE: Southwest says it will reveal more details about its assigned seating plan, including when it will take effect, at an investor event in September.
Joel Rose, NPR News, Washington.
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