Southwest Airlines will start filling planes to capacity after Thanksgiving as the airline posts a $1.2 billion third-quarter loss

• Southwest Airlines will begin filling all available seats on its aircraft come December 1.
• The social distancing measure was adopted by the airline early on but Southwest is now joining the majority of airlines in the US choosing not to block seats.
• The policy shift comes as the airline reports a $1.2 billion loss for the third quarter.

Social distancing in the skies is quickly vanishing.

Southwest Airlines announced Thursday it will no longer block seats on its aircraft as of December 1 as more airlines choose to fill their planes for the winter travel season.

"Today, aligned with science-based findings from trusted medical and aviation organizations, we will resume selling all available seats for travel beginning December 1, 2020," CEO and Chairman of the Board Gary Kelly said in an earnings press release.

Flyers will instead be given the option to change to a less crowded flight, a move also offered by American Airlines and United Airlines in lieu of blocking seats.

The airline was an early adopter of the strategy aimed at easing flyers back into the skies with some form of airborne social distancing, even if not quite six feet, as Business Insider found on a June flight with the airline. But fall has seen a greater uptick in flyers with October 18 seeing over a million daily passengers in the US, according to the Transportation Security Administration, for the first time since March and airlines are needing additional capacity as losses continue to mount.

Southwest reported a $1.2 billion loss for a third-quarter that saw only $1.8 billion in operating revenue. Unlike traditional carriers, Southwest has few forms of ancillary revenue that it can fall back on as seat assignments, checked bags, and changes are already complimentary.

Seats will still be blocked for the Thanksgiving holiday period, a normally busy time for the leisure travel market on which Southwest has a strong grip thanks to a large presence in sun destinations such as California, Arizona, Texas, and Florida. Flyers taking to the skies for Christmas, Chanukah, or New Year's travel, however, are risking crowded flights.

Delta Air Lines and Alaska Airlines will now be the only continental US airlines blocking middle seats through the holiday season. Alaska Airlines announced the extension in its third-quarter earnings announcement after reporting a GAAP net loss of $431 million.

JetBlue Airways stopped blocking all middle seats on October 15, shifting to a percentage-based capacity limit through December 1. Flights will be capped at around 70% capacity, according to The Points Guy.

Hawaiian Airlines is blocking middle seats on its aircraft until at least December 15, according to the Washington Post.

Crowded flights aren't the only changes coming to Southwest flights. The Dallas News is reporting that the airline proposed that flight attendants pitch co-branded Southwest Airlines and Chase credit cards to reduce the pay cuts being considered.

Southwest is also shifting its route network into new markets and major international airports that it has traditionally avoided in a cost-saving effort. November 15 will see the airline launch routes to Palm Springs, California, and Miami for the first time, as well as expand to Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport and Chicago's O'Hare International Airport in 2021.