– PIXABAY
After reporting a small second-quarter profit on Thursday, Southwest Airlines confirmed to NJBIZ that it plans to end flights at Newark Liberty International Airport as of Nov. 3.
The nation’s largest domestic carrier said in a press release that strong bookings offset the financial losses related to the grounding of Boeing 737 MAX jets.
“This was not an easy decision to make, but we must optimize our aircraft and resources to meet customer demand in other markets,” Southwest said in a statement provided to NJBIZ. “All Southwest employees at Newark are being offered positions at New York’s LaGuardia Airport or being allowed to bid for other open positions anywhere in the Southwest network. We want to thank Newark, and the surrounding community, for welcoming us for the past eight years, and we look forward to serving our EWR customers through November with the same Southwest hospitality they know and love.”
Affected travelers will be rebooked or can receive a refund.
Southwest started service at the Newark airport on March 27, 2011. As of June 27, 2019, Southwest offers up to 20 departures per day to 10 cities and employs 125 employees at Newark.
