Southwest has offered a one-of-a-kind, open seating policy for more than 50 years. This week, the airline announced its ending open seating in favor of assigned seats and premium seats with more legroom.

　　The longstanding policy has irked many customers who complain of seat-savers, sneaky strategies for getting a good seat and increasingly expensive early-bird fees to secure a better spot in the boarding line. In a statement, Southwest revealed that 80 percent of its current customers prefer assigned seating.

　　"Although our unique open-seating model has been a part of Southwest Airlines since our inception, our thoughtful and extensive research makes it clear this is the right choiceat the right timefor our customers, our people and our shareholders," said CEO Bob Jordan.

　　By doing away with open seating, Southwest can introduce premium seating similar to most other airlines. They can charge more of course, and passengers will likely be happy to pay for the extra legroom. While the exact layout of the cabins have not yet been revealed, the premium seats will take up about a third of the available seats on a plane.

　　Southwest has not shared when open seating will officially end, but they expect to announce further details in September at an investor meeting.

　　In addition to the end of open seating and the addition of premium seating, Southwest will add red-eye service starting in February of 2025, with more routes added in March and June. The first red-eye flights include Las Vegas to Baltimore/Washington and Orlando, Los Angeles to Baltimore/Washington and Nashville and Phoenix to Baltimore/Washington.