By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2025-04-03 13:10:06 | Updated at 2025-04-04 07:42:13
18 hours ago
Southwest Airlines has warned that its new checked baggage policy will impact travelers who rely on carry-on luggage.
The budget airline will begin charging for checked bags in May after more than 50 years of a much-loved two bags fly free' policy.
The move frustrated longtime customers frustrated and prompted questions about how the carrier will handle the increased demand for hand luggage.
Southwest estimates a 30 percent drop in checked baggage volume once the fees take effect on May 28.
It is expected that a large number of fliers will try to evade the fees by squeezing their clothes into bigger carry-on bags.
Now, executive vice president of operations Justin Jones has admitted that gate-checking of carry-on bags will surge due to limited overhead space.
'We assume our gate-check bags will probably go up five times from what we have today' Jones told the Airlines Confidential podcast.
This challenge is especially significant for Southwest, whose aircraft have smaller overhead bins than competitors — a design choice based on its longstanding free-bag policy. As a result, the airline will now more strictly enforce size limits for carry-ons.
Southwest is anticipating a 30 percent increase in its cabin bags after June 1
'It was a curve ball that we were thrown' Jones said of the change in baggage charges.
'We always carry more bags than anyone else out there,' Jones said.
Indeed, customers have famously taken advantage of Southwest's generous policy to transport kitchen sinks and toilets across the country.
'We're going to need to do several things,' but 'we want to make sure the customer experience is still very high.'
'So we're going to be extremely hesitant to go out and do heavy policing on bag size like some other carriers do.
However, the policy change 'will result in more gate checked bags and fees.'
Checking passenger's bags as they board the plane is a time-consuming activity and may cause flight delays as the airline and its passengers get used to the new system.
'We're dependent on everything kind of flowing' Jones said of Southwest's business model which relies on keeping aircraft in the skies rather than wasting time on the ground.
The airlines has introduced fees for checked luggage after 50 years
Southwest bosses predict they will now need to confiscate five times more bags at the gate
'I'm not going to say we're not nervous about June 1' he said of the first flights where the fees will apply.
Southwest had the lowest cancellation rate of any airline in the world last year, cancelling just 0.62 percent of its flights, according to the Syrian airline report.
Long-term Jones said the answer will be in the introduction of new planes to Southwest's fleet with more cabin bag capacity.
The fees are part of Southwest's efforts to boost its bottom line.
In February the airline announced plans to cut 15 percent of its corporate workforce in a bid to cut costs.
The layoffs - a first in the airline's 53-year history - will slash around about 1,750 jobs.
The cuts make a shift in strategy following last year's battle with activist hedge fund Elliott Investment Management. To keep Elliot at bay, bosses agreed to cut costs and find new ways to make money, such as charging for seating.
Unlike its rivals, Southwest had long avoided mass job cuts, even during economic downturns, 9/11, and the pandemic.
