As of Thursday, February 13, 2025, Southwest Airlines has launched redeye lights.
Through 2017, Southwest used a system that had to be reset each night, forcing all flights to land by 11:00 PM PT. Southwest now uses Amadeus and its recently-signed contracts with both pilots and flight attendants now allow for redeyes.
As of February 13, 2025, Southwest launched the following redeye flights:
- Las Vegas (LAS) to Baltimore (BWI)
- Las Vegas (LAS) to Orlando (MCO)
- Los Angeles (LAX) to Baltimore (BWI)
- Los Angeles (LAX) to Nashville (BNA)
- Phoenix (PHX) to Baltimore (BWI)
Southwest says, “Redeye flying, coupled with continued reductions in turn-time through new technologies and procedures, is expected to provide incremental revenue and cost savings, enabling Southwest to fund nearly all new capacity over the next three years without incremental aircraft capital deployment.”
To celebrate, Southwest held gate parties in Las Vegas, Los Angeles, and Phoenix and provided passengers with eye masks…a new amenity for Southwest.
My original story is below.
Southwest Airlines has floated the idea of redeye flights since 2017, but it now appears the Texas-based carrier will finally add overnight flights to the schedule starting in February 2025.
Southwest Airlines Redeye Flights Are On The Horizon
Domestic redeye flights, flights that depart late and arrive early the following morning, are both loathed and praised by flyers. Even if you are able to sleep on planes, a flight time of 3-5 hours is hardly enough time for a solid rest. On the other hand, you can go to bed on one side of the country and wake up on the other: it is a very efficient way to travel.
For years the reservation system used by Southwest Airlines prevented the airline from operating redeye flights. In fact, the antiquated system required taht all flights land by 11:00 pm. That changed in 2017 when Southwest switched to Amadeus, but six years later the carrier still has not introduced redeye flights.
That policy will appear to change in the months ahead according to Southwest CEO Bob Jordan in an interview with the Dallas Morning News:
“It’s a logical evolution for us. We have the aircraft, it’s a great way to use an asset that you already have and use it more productively which means more hours in the day. So, we will be doing redeyes.”
Redeyes are planned to launch on Feburary 13, 2025 with routes from Las Vegas, Los Angeles, and Phoneix.
Expect redeye contracts to be addressed in the new pilot contract, currently under negotiation.
CONCLUSION
Airlines make money when their planes are in the air, not on the ground. Southwest is unique among US carriers in grounding its entire fleet overnight. Although there may be contractual issues to work out with pilots, it seems only a matter of time before Southwest adds redeye flights of its own.
Would you take a redeye flight on Southwest Airlines?
image: Southwest Airlines
Do you mean 11PM?
I wonder if they’ll work their way back into EWR now?
Ryanair has never operated redeyes to my knowledge and easyJet did in the early days (LTN-ATH, for example) but I don’t think it does now. I’m not even if Wizzair does, with its lengthy AUH routes.
How would a redeye (in the true sense of leaving a place at night and arriving the next morning) even work in Europe with the minimal time change and shorter distances than in the US?
Easy. NW Europe to SE Europe/Middle East (as previously mentioned), Canary Islands to Scandinavia and Eastern Europe (both of these offer redeyes in the current winter schedule.
Or you just have flights to holiday destinations at very cheap prices that depart and take off at crazy hours.
I took many flights on Ryanair and Easyjet in the 2000s that took off from Stansted at 2am, and landed in ibiza at 5am
I also thought that their pilot contracts didn’t allow Red-eyes? Is that not correct?
That’s why the issue will be addressed in the next contract.
Great I would rather take redeye, and arrive in morning. This would be great for parents with little kids too.
Southwest does not have seats that recline for overnight flights.
Spirit doesn’t either.
It would make sense for Southwest to fly redeye’s from Hawaii back to the mainland where passengers can then connect further on from the West coast airports.
I can’t imagine many worse things than a redeye on a skinny 737 seat on southwest, followed by a transcon or midcon.
I would/will welcome “Redeye’s” when they come to Houston. Earlier to Vegas and leaving later from Vegas back to Houston. It is a no brainer.
Talk about antiquated and 45 years behind the times………all because of their computer systems ?