Southwest to cut 200 flights early 2009

Southwest Airlines planes prepare for departure from Oakland International Airport in Oakland, California in this May 29, 2006, file image. (REUTERS/John Gress)

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Southwest Airlines Co <LUV.N> said on Tuesday it plans to cut about 200 flights in the first quarter of 2009 as it tries to focus on more profitable flights to combat high fuel costs and a slow economy.

The leading U.S. low-cost carrier said that following the introduction of new software to manage flight schedules it was trying to better match its schedule to customer demand.

Southwest said it will cut 196 flights and add six new flights between January and March. This represents nearly 6 percent of the airline's daily schedule of around 3,400 flights.

In June, Southwest said it would buck the industry trend to reduce capacity and flights by eliminating 31 existing round-trip flights and adding 40 new flights in growing markets. In January it said it would eliminate 57 flights from its May schedule.

Like other airlines, Southwest has been impacted by rising fuel prices but to date has been less negatively affected by successfully hedging against high fuel costs -- locking in guaranteed lower fuel prices before the rises.

Southwest spokeswoman Beth Harbin said the cuts will mainly affect a few early-morning and late-night flights from cities including Dallas and Houston, where the airline has up to 30 flights a day.

"We're making sure that the schedule is productive or profitable by being able to adjust for the seasonal shift in demand during the winter months," said Harbin.

Southwest Chief Executive Gary Kelly said last month the airline had the ability to eliminate unproductive flights and the company planned to increase its year-over-year available seat mile (ASM) capacity no more than 4 percent in 2008.

(Reporting by Yinka Adegoke; Editing by Gary Hill)