TAMPA, Fla. — Southwest Airlines made an announcement that will impact where passengers at Tampa International Airport (TPA) will be able to fly to, doing away with one of its nonstop routes.
After reporting a loss of $231 million in the first quarter, the airline said it will end flights to and from four airports in August. The announcement impacts passengers at TPA as they will no longer be able to fly to these destinations:
The changes will also get rid of TPA's nonstop flights to Syracuse. Travelers' last chance to fly directly to Syracuse Hancock International Airport with Southwest is from June 8 until August 4.
That final date is the same day as Southwest's last flights for the other three airports.
The airline will also cut half of its flights in Atlanta and about one-third at Chicago O'Hare International Airport, likely sending more passengers to its main Chicago service at Midway International Airport.
Southwest hasn't left an airport since 2019, when it pulled out of Newark, New Jersey, and consolidated its New York City-area flying at LaGuardia Airport, according to The Associated Press.
The decision was prompted by the loss of earnings along with delays in deliveries of new Boeing aircraft. The airplane manufacturer has been struggling with slower production since a door plug blew out of an Alaska Airlines Max 9 in January.
Southwest said the move will help the airline focus on more profitable locations and deploy a smaller fleet of planes. The company said it expects to get only 20 new 737 Max 8 jets from Boeing this year, down from the 46 it expected just a few weeks ago. The airline said it will offset some of the shortage by retiring fewer planes.
In addition to scaling back its fleet and routes, Southwest said it plans to scale back its workforce as well.
CEO Robert Jordan said in order “to address [the] financial underperformance," the airline will also limit hiring to critical positions and ask employees to take unpaid time off.
The airline expects to end the year with 2,000 fewer employees than it started with. Executives said they can cut those jobs through attrition and without furloughs or layoffs.
Dallas-based Southwest said that its $231 million loss, after excluding special items, made up about 36 cents per share. That was slightly worse than the loss of 34 cents per share that Wall Street expected.
Revenue rose to $6.33 billion. That was a company record for the January-March quarter, but it was below analysts' forecast of $6.42 billion and not enough to overcome rising expenses including a 19% jump in labor costs.
Last-minute leisure trips were lower than expected, and some newer markets performed poorly, the airline said.
Executives said Southwest is studying changes in boarding and seating to determine how customers will respond and how much money that could raise. They declined to give details until an investor day in September, but Chief Commercial Officer Ryan Green said bag fees and a curtained-off premium cabin are not being considered. Southwest, alone among major U.S. airlines, doesn't charge extra for one or two checked bags.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.