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Southwest Airlines may be scrapping its free-for-all boarding arrangements and assigning seats to passengers instead, the airline has revealed.

The American low-cost carrier said it was currently conducting computer tests to determine whether or not assigned seating could be easily implemented and how it would affect its operations.

Chief executive Gary Kelly was quick to point out however that the current system will only be scrapped if the tests prove that doing so would not impact negatively on costs and efficiency.

'We've got to get comfortable that we're going to generate more revenue by assigning seats,' he told Bloomberg News. 'If we get comfortable that we can improve customer service, based on what our customers think, and we can become more efficient, it's a home run.'

The move follows complaints from passengers about the open-seat policy. Business travellers in particular dislike the arrangements, which require them to arrive at the airport hours before they are due to fly in order to get their preferred seats.

Southwest is the only US airline to operate a free-for-all seating system, claiming that printing out boarding passes will add to costs and possibly delay flights as people try to find their correct seats.

But in the face of fierce competition from budding carriers offering increasingly low fares, the airline is now having to review its policy to keep customers interested.


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