Southwest Airlines Posts Q1 Loss, Warns Boeing Delivery Delays Will Impact Operations Into 2025

A Southwest Airlines 737 at LaGuardia’s Central Terminal Building
Southwest Airlines announced financial results for first quarter of 2024.
The report came on the heels of news Wednesday of a new contract with the carrier’s flight attendants.
The airline posted a wider loss for the first quarter than the same period last year, reporting a loss of $231 million, versus $159 million in the same period in 2023 on what was a record $6.33 billion in revenue, an 11% year-over-year increase.
“While it is disappointing to incur a first quarter loss, we exited the quarter with healthy profits and margins in the month of March,” said the airline’s CEO, Bob Jordan. “While costs remain a headwind, we are realizing benefits from our ongoing cost reduction actions and remain focused on enhancing productivity and controlling discretionary spending,” Jordan added.
Passenger revenue was up 11.9% year-over-year to $5.71 billion. The airline’s load factor rose 70 basis points to 78.3%, and the average passenger fare was up 2.9% to $173.76. Passenger revenue per available seat mile rose 0.8%.
Southwest expects the fallout from Boeing’s delayed 737 Max deliveries to impact it well into the coming year. The airline said it expects about 20 Boeing 737 Max deliveries this year, down from a prior forecast of 46 aircraft.
Meanwhile, Southwest on Wednesday announced that its flight attendants voted in favor of a new collective bargaining agreement. The deal will bring what the airline termed “industry-leading” compensation increases, the deployment of a  “refined” on-call scheduling, and paid maternity and parental leaves.
(Photo: Accura Media Group)