VIDEO: Southwest Airlines to Charge Some Flyers for Checked Bags

There has been much groaning after Dallas-based Southwest Airlines decided to start charging some travelers for checked bags.

The decision came after much pressure from Elliott Investment Management which took a stake in the airline in 2024, gaining five board seats before urging the company to make significant changes, CNBC reported on Tuesday.

In July, the airline announced it was ending its tradition of open seating on flights. More recently, Southwest Airlines said in February it was cutting 15 percent of its corporate roles to reduce costs and shake up the company, according to Breitbart News.

The CNBC report detailed the move regarding checked bags:

For tickets purchased on or after May 28, Southwest customers in all but the top-tier fare class will have to pay to check bags, though there will be exceptions. Elite frequent flyers who hold “A-List Preferred” status will still get two bags and A-List level members will get one free checked bag. Southwest credit card holders will also get one free checked bag. “Two bags fly free” is a registered trademark on Southwest’s website. But its decision to about-face on what executives long cast as a sacrosanct passenger perk brings the largest U.S. domestic carrier in line with its rivals, which together generated more than $5 billion from bag fees last year, according to federal data.

Customers who spoke with 11 Alive expressed shock at the news about checked baggage because they used to choose the airline because their luggage flew for free.

“The way the economy is, you know, everybody likes the free baggage. I mean, I guess you gotta do what you gotta do. But I don’t think too many people are going to be happy with that,” one man told the outlet:

The company’s executives have for a long time said they did not plan on charging customers for their checked bags, per the CNBC report.

“At an investor day in September, Southwest said that it would gain between $1 billion and $1.5 billion from charging for bags but lose $1.8 billion of market share. Southwest said its ‘rigorous research’ found that ‘our ‘bags fly free’ policy generates market share gains in excess of potential lost revenue from bag fees,’ the company said in a presentation tied to its investor day,” the outlet noted.