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Southwest to charge for checked bags, sell basic economy seats

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States - March 4, 2024: Southwest Airlines N8819L, Boeing 737 aircraft shown on final approach at Harry Reid Airport.
Southwest bag fee FILE PHOTO: Southwest Airlines is changing its longstanding bags fly free policy. (ANGEL_DIBILIO/angeldibilio - stock.adobe.com)

Southwest Airlines is changing its longstanding policy of “bags fly free.”

Starting for bookings made on or after May 28, customers who are in the top tier of its Rapid Rewards program, called A-List Preferred or those who buy the most expensive tickets will still be able to check two bags for free, The Wall Street Journal reported.

It is the only major airline not to charge a baggage fee, Reuters reported.

Those who are members of A-List level or those who have a Southwest credit card will get one free checked bag, CNBC reported.

Everyone else will have to pay to check their luggage, but the company didn’t say how much that charge would be, the newspaper reported.

“What’s changed is that we’ve come to realize that we need more revenue to cover our costs,” COO Andrew Watterson told CNBC, explaining why the company did an about-face on baggage fees. “We think that these changes that we’re announcing today will lead to less of that share shift than would have been the case otherwise.”

The company is also giving passengers the option of buying a ticket similar to other airlines' basic economy tickets with no advanced assigned seat.

Southwest has been making changes to its longstanding policies, including doing away with its open seating policy and changing the cabin to give some seats extra legroom, The Wall Street Journal said.

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