Southwest Airlines Gets 17 Flight Slots at Long Beach Airport
by Daniel McCarthy
Southwest will now be the biggest player at Long Beach Airport. Photo: Shutterstock.com.
Southwest Airlines has claimed all 17 flight slots at California’s Long Beach Airport, picking up the slots from JetBlue who will relinquish them on Oct. 6.
Southwest, which started flying from the airport in 2016, will now be the most active airline at Long Beach Airport as JetBlue concentrates its operations to LAX. Southwest will now operate with a total of 34 flight slots from Long Beach, more than Delta (12), American (3), and Hawaiian (2), combined.
“Southwest picking up all available flight slots at the Long Beach Airport so quickly is a testament to the strength of our airport and their commitment to succeeding here in Long Beach, Mayor Robert Garcia said in a statement.
Long Beach, which is about three miles from downtown Long Beach and was previously Daugherty Field Airport, was the 75th ranked airport in terms of passenger arrival and departures in 2019 according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics. In total, it offers 53 flight slots.
According to the airport, Long Beach is still dealing with a sharp drop in passenger traffic because of COVID-19, but it has seen a modest increase in traffic in recent months. The airport is one of the only ones in the nation to offer outdoor concourses and outdoor boarding.
