Southwest Airlines is weighing new aircraft options, including long-range narrowbody jets and possibly widebody planes, to launch long-haul intercontinental flights. CEO Bob Jordan confirmed the review in September 2025 and signaled a first push beyond the Americas in the early 2030s. The carrier aims to place an order within two years, a timeline shaped by long manufacturer backlogs, and plans to start with narrowbody service to lower risk as it enters markets far from its traditional U.S. base 🇺🇸.
Jordan has said the initial long-haul step will likely use long-range narrowbody aircraft that can fly about 4,000 miles, enough for transatlantic routes from the East Coast to Western Europe. While some widebody models—such as the Boeing 787 Dreamliner—remain under consideration for later phases, Southwest has never flown widebodies and would need new training programs, new maintenance processes, and labor approval from pilots and flight attendants before any such move. That makes a narrowbody-first plan the practical path for an airline that has spent decades building operations around the Boeing 737.
Strategic product and partnership changes
The strategic shift arrives alongside sweeping product changes. In 2025, Southwest introduced assigned seating, premium seating, and new fare bundles, and it began charging for checked bags—big changes for a brand known for open seating and free bags.
The airline also:
– Joined IATA and earned IOSA certification in January 2025.
– Expanded partnerships and interline relationships to make deeper international connectivity easier.
According to analysis by VisaVerge.com, these actions point to a broader plan to compete for higher-spend travelers who expect more choice, comfort, and connections on long flights.
These product moves and certifications align Southwest with global standards and help make deeper international partnerships easier to manage.
Fleet planning and upgrades
Fleet planning is central to the long-haul strategy.
Key facts as of September 2025:
– Southwest operates 802 aircraft, all Boeing 737s, including 277 MAX 8s.
– CFO Tom Doxey projected up to 47 additional 737 MAX 8 deliveries by year-end.
– The airline expects roughly 1% capacity growth in 2025.
Simultaneously, Southwest is retrofitting more than 800 jets with premium seating and assigned seating, targeting completion by December 31, 2025. Senior Vice President Landon Nitschke oversees these upgrades and an expansion of maintenance capacity to support the coming growth.
Why narrowbody first?
Jordan has pointed to long-range narrowbody types—most notably the Airbus A321LR/XLR or the Boeing 737 MAX 8—as the likely first tools for intercontinental flying. Although Southwest currently flies only Boeing aircraft, the review includes all aircraft options that fit the mission.
- The MAX 8’s range allows potential transatlantic service from East Coast airports like Baltimore-Washington (BWI).
- Analysts flag routes to Iceland and Western Europe as initial targets.
- Partnerships—especially with Icelandair—could use Keflavik International Airport as a hub to connect travelers onward to mainland Europe.
Southwest’s longest current route, Phoenix–Honolulu (2,917 miles), demonstrates its comfort with extended overwater operations on the 737. However, true intercontinental flying introduces new operational demands: longer duty days, augmented crews, new rest rules, and different maintenance planning at distant stations.
Regulatory context
Southwest’s IOSA certification supports scalable safety and quality systems for long-haul demands. For formal certification and ongoing oversight of long-haul operations, Southwest must continue working within federal standards.
The Federal Aviation Administration’s airline certification framework outlines requirements for U.S. carriers operating under Part 121. Readers can review those rules at: FAA Airline Certification
Partnerships and market testing
Recent partnerships (April–August 2025) with Icelandair, China Airlines, and EVA Air provide customers access to Europe and Asia through established hubs while Southwest tests demand and schedules.
Planned international service to the Caribbean includes:
– St. Thomas — February 2026
– St. Maarten — April 2026
These moves mark Southwest’s first new international markets since 2021 and act as a real-world lab for connection timing, baggage flows, and premium product uptake prior to launching long-haul flights.
Operational and labor steps ahead
Launching intercontinental service requires a careful, step-by-step plan:
- Aircraft decision and order: Within two years, aiming for first routes in the early 2030s.
- Fleet retrofits: Premium and assigned seating across the fleet by December 31, 2025.
- Partnership expansion: More global agreements to widen connectivity and codeshare options.
- Regulatory milestones: IOSA achieved; further approvals for long-range operations still ahead.
- Labor agreements: New services and duty patterns will require pilot and flight attendant approval.
- Route rollout: Early focus on transatlantic markets, likely starting with Iceland to leverage partner connections.
Labor will be a core factor. Pilots and flight attendants must approve changes affecting work rules, pay, rest, and training. Long-duty days and extended overwater segments will reshape crew planning, and Southwest stated it will work through these details as it firms up its long-haul plan.
Customer reaction and brand considerations
Customer reaction is another test. The move to assigned seating and checked bag fees could unsettle longtime flyers who expected Southwest’s simpler model. Yet the airline believes that premium seating, fare bundles, and expanded destinations will attract new customers and unlock more loyalty revenue.
This tradeoff—evolving the product while maintaining trust—will define how smoothly Southwest can transition to longer flights.
Analyst views, risks, and timeline
Analysts see both upside and risk:
– Upside: Southwest could disrupt transatlantic low-cost travel, particularly by serving medium-size U.S. cities that currently lack nonstop Europe flights.
– Risk: Rapid product change may dilute the brand’s identity and alienate loyal customers.
Jordan’s approach—a measured rollout that starts with narrowbodies, learns with partners, and then considers widebodies—aims to balance those pressures during a period of supply chain constraints and uncertain demand.
Given manufacturer backlogs, even a near-term order would likely deliver aircraft toward the end of the decade or later. That makes partnerships and product improvements the main growth levers through 2026, alongside domestic schedule refinements and targeted Caribbean expansion. If these moves build demand and loyalty, the first long-haul flights in the early 2030s should arrive with lower risk.
Where to follow official updates
- Southwest’s official announcements: Southwest.com
- FAA regulatory and safety resources for long-range operations: see the FAA public pages linked above.
VisaVerge.com reports that Southwest’s IOSA milestone and alliance-building will likely speed up interline and codeshare links, giving customers more one-stop options to Europe and Asia even before the airline flies its own intercontinental routes.
This Article in a Nutshell
Southwest Airlines announced in September 2025 that it is reviewing long-range narrowbody and potential widebody aircraft to launch intercontinental flights, aiming to place an order within two years and debut routes in the early 2030s. The airline favors starting with long-range narrowbodies—aircraft with approximately 4,000-mile range—to minimize operational risk and leverage existing single-aisle experience. Major 2025 product changes (assigned seating, premium seating, fare bundles, and bag fees), IOSA certification, and expanded partnerships with carriers including Icelandair, China Airlines, and EVA Air support the strategy. Fleet facts: 802 Boeing 737s, 277 MAX 8s, and up to 47 additional MAX 8 deliveries expected in 2025; over 800 jets will be retrofitted with premium seating by December 31, 2025. Key next steps include aircraft selection and ordering, regulatory approvals, labor agreements, and a phased route rollout starting with transatlantic markets.
