Southwest Airlines Exec Defends Changes, Says Network Is a ‘Huge Differentiator’
Photo Credit: Southwest CFO Tom Doxey speaking at Skift Aviation Forum in Fort Worth, Texas on December 3, 2025. Skift
Skift Take
With no fees for the first two bags, Southwest pitched itself as a maverick airline going against the grain. The airline's marketing department has a major challenge now that a lot of the airline's unique attributes are gone.
Southwest Airlines has caught up to the core features other airlines have long had: seat assignments, extra legroom, and bag fees. Now it thinks its network is a key competitive advantage.
"We have developed into having the largest point-to-point network in the U.S.," said CFO Tom Doxey, who was speaking Wednesday at the Skift Aviation Forum in Fort Worth, Texas. "That is a huge, huge differentiator."
He said Southwest is the largest carrier in the top 50 U.S. aviati
