Southwest Comes to LaGuardia
June 27, 2009 by Mark Ellis
Filed under Business
Southwest Airlines will start offering flights out of New York’s LaGuardia Airport beginning today. Despite the fact that the new location certainly is not described by the airlines’ name, Southwest is confident that including service to LaGuardia is a solid strategic move.
“As we’ve gotten larger and our network has expanded, you can’t ignore New York City,” said Bob Jordan, executive vice president of strategy and planning for Southwest. Jordan attributed Southwest’s move to LaGuardia to good fortune and good timing, as well as the fact that many of Southwest’s 101.9 million customers per year might want to go to New York.
Industry analysts praise Southwest’s move, calling it a necessary step for the airline to keep growing and to maintain its status as a giant. Although expanding is always a risky move considering the costs involved, analysts agree that New York is a popular enough destination to fill the seats that Southwest needs to fill to make the addition worth it.
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