SOUTHWEST AIRLINES EARNS HIGH RANKING IN BUSINESS TRAVEL NEWS SURVEY FOR EXCELLENCE IN CORPORATE TRAVEL

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Nov 17, 2023, 15:12 ET

DALLAS, Nov. 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE: LUV) celebrates the carrier's recognition on the Business Travel News (BTN) 2023 Airline Survey for customer satisfaction in business travel. The annual survey asks corporate travel managers and corporate travel agents to rate carriers on a scale of one to five across nearly a dozen criteria and respond to questions about their experience with airlines from the past 12 months.

"Southwest Business is committed to providing our Customers not only with great value, but also a Team of trusted advisors that travel decision makers can rely on," said Dave Harvey, Vice President and Chief Sales Officer at Southwest Airlines. "We've been hard at work reducing friction this year with tools like Southwest Business Assist™ and our Southwest Business Meetings product, as well as our ongoing work to deliver a travel experience that aligns with our brand and meets the evolving expectations of our Customers. We're proud of our travel managers, the entire Southwest Business Team, and all our Employees who consistently deliver a great experience and Legendary Hospitality."

Southwest^® ranked second overall and is the only carrier on the survey to receive an increased total score two years in a row. Respondents ranked Southwest first in the value of relationship with account managers and overall price value categories. The carrier also saw year-over-year improvement in scores in both the distribution channels and quality of data and reporting tools categories.

In the past year, Southwest introduced Southwest Business Meetings, a redesigned experience created to simplify the experience for meeting planners to manage travel on Southwest. Additionally, as part of a two-billion-dollar plan to transform its Customer Experience, the carrier launched free Inflight Internet for Customers who purchase a Business Select fare¹, upgraded inflight WiFi hardware, larger overhead bins and in-seat power onboard new aircraft deliveries, digital bag tracking, flight credits that don't expire², and enhanced digital self-service capabilities.

BTN from Sept. 25 to Oct. 18, 2023, collected survey responses from 647 corporate travel buyers and corporate travel agents and asked participants to rate carriers across 11 performance criteria, including customer service, products and services, network, and more.

For more information on Southwest Business, visit southwest.com/aboutbusiness.

ABOUT SOUTHWEST AIRLINES CO.
Southwest Airlines Co. operates one of the world's most admired and awarded airlines, offering its one-of-a-kind value and Hospitality at 121 airports across 11 countries. Southwest took flight in 1971 to democratize the sky through friendly, reliable, and low-cost air travel and now carries more air travelers flying nonstop within the United States than any other airline³. Based in Dallas and famous for an Employee-first corporate Culture, Southwest maintains an unprecedented record of no involuntary furloughs or layoffs in its history. By empowering its more than 74,000⁴People to deliver unparalleled Hospitality, the maverick airline cherishes a passionate loyalty among more than 126 million Customers carried in 2022. That formula for success brought industry-leading prosperity and 47 consecutive years⁵of profitability for Southwest Shareholders (NYSE: LUV). Southwest leverages a unique legacy and mission to serve communities around the world including harnessing the power of its People and Purpose to put communities at the Heart of its success. Learn more by visiting Southwest.com/citizenship. As the airline with Heart, Southwest has set a goal to work toward achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050. Southwest has also set near-term targets and a three-pillar strategy to achieve its environmental goals. Learn more by visiting Southwest.com/planet.

¹ Where available. Available only on WiFi-enabled aircraft.
² Flight credits for non-refundable fares will be issued as long as the flight is cancelled more than 10 minutes prior to the scheduled departure.
³ Based on U.S. Dept. Of Transportation quarterly Airline Origin & Destination Survey since Q1 2021
⁴ Fulltime-equivalent active Employees
⁵1973-2019 annual profitability

SOURCE Southwest Airlines Co.