Southwest Raises Fares
Mar 14th, 2006 | By Jared BlankThey may be the king of the discounters, but Southwest Airlines is also the king of profitability. That may or may not make any sense. Whatever. The airline raised top fares $10 (and its cheapest fares by $2) each way to offset fuel prices. This move increases the carrier’s top fare to $309 each way (break out that abacus to figure out what the old top fare was). Other carriers let out a huge sigh of relief and also raised their fares. I suspect Southwest will drop the top fares (which few people actually pay) once fuel prices drop a bit. Keep in mind as you read this story elsewhere, that $309 fare is a rarity. Most people will end up only paying $4 or $8 extra for a round trip ticket.