Southwest Didn't Get the Gains It Expected From New Online Booking Channels

When Southwest Airlines finally began showing its flights for the first time on Google Flights, Kayak, and Expedia, it didn't get the pop it anticipated.

While Southwest went live in Google Flights and Kayak in 2024, Expedia only started showing Southwest's flights on February 26.

And that was a major factor, along with pressure from investor Elliott Management, that led Southwest to reverse its "bags fly free policy."

Up until 2024, basically the only place to book Southwest fares online for leisure travelers was Southwest.com and the Southwest app.

Southwest CEO Bob Jordan noted the disappointing results of the change in booking channels at a financial conference Tuesday: "We saw no share shift to Southwest Airlines for the fact we had better policies."

Those "better policies" referred largely to the l