Episode 19: Yes, This Seat Is Open

06/22/21 • 6 min

Window, aisle, or middle? Since Southwest Airlines first took to the skies, seating has been customer's choice. The reasons behind the open seating have as much to do with the airline’s unique culture as they do with an optimized boarding process. In this episode, Managing Director Customer Experience Tony Roach explains the policy that sets Southwest apart from the rest.

For more stories on Southwest Airlines’ 50 years of flying and a look behind the scenes, check out latimes.com/isthisseatopen

For more stories on Southwest Airlines’ 50 years of flying and a look behind the scenes, check out latimes.com/isthisseatopen

Previous Episode

Episode 18: The Last Flight Of Rosa Parks

Lou Freeman can lay claim to a lot of firsts. He was in the first group of students to integrate his high school in Dallas. He was the first African American undergraduate to train at his air force base in Texas, He was the first Black pilot at Southwest Airlines, and he was the first Black chief pilot of any major U.S. airline. So, when Rosa Parks passed away and was to be flown to Montgomery, Alabama, for a final farewell, Lou Freeman got the call. In this episode, we’ll hear the story of the last flight of Rosa Parks, as told by the flight’s pilot, Retired Southwest Chief Pilot Lou Freeman.

For more stories on Southwest Airlines’ 50 years of flying and a look behind the scenes, check out latimes.com/isthisseatopen

Next Episode

Episode 20: Flying Through A Pandemic

Passengers stopped flying. Cleaning protocols needed to be overhauled. Keeping an airline running through a global pandemic is no easy task, but Southwest Airlines pulled it off, and without involuntary furloughs, layoffs, or pay reductions. In this episode, Southwest Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Gary Kelly and Managing Director Communications & Outreach Laurie Barnett discuss how they respectively tackled the greatest threat to their airline in the company’s 50 year history.

For more stories on Southwest Airlines’ 50 years of flying and a look behind the scenes, check out latimes.com/isthisseatopen