Southwest cancels commissions
Southwest Airlines has announced it will no longer pay travel agent commissions as of December 15.
Southwest was the last major US airline paying base commissions to travel agents.
Southwest’s chief executive officer, Jim Parker said: “We waited this long to make the change in our commission policy to give all agencies – large and small ample time to shift their business models to the industry norm of fee-based services.”
The airline said it was making the move to cut costs.
In the third quarter of this year, Southwest’s online bookings generated 55% of its revenue, while travel agency bookings counted for about 15%.
The change will save Southwest about $40 million annually, according to Mr Parker.
Southwest operates 385 Boeing 737s in 58 cities in 30 states. The airline has nearly 2,800 daily departures. It was named the number one airline in the US in May and June of this year for the most passenger boardings in each of those months.
Southwest Airlines Vacations, in an effort to avoid confusion with the airline itself, has announced that it will maintain its current commission structure.
That rate is 10% on bulk air packages booked electronically, and 10% on the land portion and 5% commission on the air portion of published fare vacation packages booked electronically.
The rate is 5% on bookings made through Southwest Airlines Vacations’ call centre.
“The majority of our business continues to come from travel agents and our commitment to our agent partners remains strong,” said Michael Spencer, executive vice president and general manager at The Mark Travel Corporation (operator of Southwest Airlines Vacations).
He added: “By offering a high-quality vacation product that is valuable to customers and a booking mechanism VAX VacationAccess, that is convenient for travel agents, we have positioned travel agent partnerships as a key component of our distribution strategy.”
With VAX, agents can book from any computer with internet access at any time. Agents can also get up-to-the-minute availability, pricing and other information. The Mark Travel Corporation, tour operator for Southwest Airlines Vacations, is headquartered in Orlando.
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
Turkish tourism stalls due to soaring prices for accommodation and food
CCS Insight: eSIMs ready to take the travel world by storm
Germany new European Entry/Exit System limited to a single airport on October 12, 2025
Airlines suspend Madagascar services following unrest and army revolt
Qatar Airways offers flexible payment options for European travellers