Southwest Airlines unveils date to begin Fresno service. Here’s where they will be flying
Southwest Airlines will enter the Fresno air travel market in April with daily nonstop round trips to Las Vegas and Denver.
The airline, which has long been coveted by Fresno city officials and Valley travelers, officially unveiled its plans Thursday, about a month after initially announcing its intention to begin flights to and from Fresno Yosemite International Airport.
The two routes will start on April 25. Southwest will fly one daily round trip between Fresno and Denver, and three daily round trips between Fresno and Las Vegas.
Andrew Watterson, Southwest’s executive vice president and chief commercial officer, said the two cities were selected because the airline already has a significant presence in each city. It also represents an opportunity for Fresno passengers to connect to flights to 50 other destinations.
Additionally, “Las Vegas is a popular destination no matter where you live,” he said. “It’s a difficult drive from Fresno, but it’s an easy flight.”
Watterson said Fresno has been a possible market for expanding the airline’s service for several years, but the global coronavirus pandemic actually served to help accelerate the move as a means of keeping otherwise idle aircraft and flight crews in service.
“We probably would have done this at some year in the future,” Watterson told The Bee. “This (pandemic) just pulled it forward.”
“Right now we find ourselves with excess aircraft (because) the pandemic has reduced demand for air travel,” he said. “This allows us to redeploy aircraft and people into new markets. … Rather than furlough people and park aircraft, we can use them in new markets like Fresno.”
Fresno is among several cities where Southwest is starting new services. “All of these are cities we’ve looked at over time, but we just didn’t have the aircraft,” Watterson added.
Watterson said the service will launch with introductory promotional prices starting at $69 per person one way to Denver and $39 per person for a one-way ticket to Las Vegas.
In addition to the ticket pricing specials, Southwest allows each passenger to check two bags at no charge, and does not charge change fees for its tickets – “those are longstanding policies of which we’re quite proud,” Watterson said.
Southwest will fly its own mainline Boeing 737 jets for the two routes rather than partnering with a regional airline. The service is expected to begin with 143-seat jets, with the opportunity to grow into larger 175-seat versions if demand warrants.
More pricing competition?
Southwest currently flies to 101 U.S. cities and 10 foreign countries, and has been expanding its network. In 2020, the carrier added service to Hilo, Hawaii; Cozumel, Mexico; Miami; Palm Springs; and Steamboat Springs and Montrose (Telluride), Colorado.
Besides Fresno, the airline will commence service in the first half of 2021 to O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, Ill.; Sarasota/Bradenton, Fla; Savannah/Hilton Head serving Georgia and South Carolina; Colorado Springs, Colo.; Houston; Santa Barbara; and Jackson, Miss.
Benefits for customers
Both Watterson and Kevin Meikle, aviation director for the city of Fresno, said they expect Southwest’s entry into the Fresno market will spur greater competition in pricing and result in generally lower fares for passengers.
The high cost of flying from Fresno has long been a frequent complaint of passengers in the region. Data from the Federal Aviation Administration’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics for the third quarter of 2020 indicates that Fresno Yosemite International Airport had one of the highest prices for an average domestic itinerary among the top 100 airports in the U.S..
The $301 average domestic itinerary – which includes all flights including connections for trips originating in Fresno – was tied for second with Charleston, South Carolina, and behind only the $302 cost at Washington Dulles International Airport in Virginia.
“In general, when we enter a market, what you find is that the price points go down,” Watterson said. Other airlines may have prices set before Southwest arrives, “but when we come in they match what we have. It brings down fares even for people that don’t fly with us.”
Both United Airlines and Frontier Airlines fly between Fresno and Denver. Currently, the Fresno-Las Vegas route is currently served only by Allegiant Air.
Fits with airport’s plans
Southwest’s foray into Fresno will also generate more revenue for the city-owned airport. Airlines pay landing fees and per-passenger security fees to the airport. How much income results will ultimately depend on not only on the number of flights offered, but how many passengers they carry.
Meikle said that passenger flow through the Fresno airport is about 60% of what it was in 2019, before the pandemic trashed the travel industry. “We have the gate space, we have counters available, and we have office space for their operations people,” Meikle said. “Getting ready for them to start up in April is no problem.”
In anticipation of future growth — whether more flights and destinations for Southwest or the incumbent airlines such as United Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Alaska Air and others — the airport is continuing work on an ambitious expansion plan that will add two more gates.
The plan will also increase parking, enlarge the TSA security checkpoint area to add more lines and other improvements that “will be very important not only as we add Southwest but recover from the pandemic through 2021 and on,” Meikle said.
“We’re ready for Southwest, and we’re planning for their growth as well as others’ growth,” he added.
This story was originally published January 21, 2021 at 7:00 AM.
CORRECTION: The original version of this story incorrectly identified Andrew Watterson, Southwest’s executive vice president and chief commercial officer.
