Southwest Airlines to introduce the new Boeing 737-800 on April 11 between Chicago Midway and Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood

Southwest Airlines (Dallas) has announced the inauguration date for the first Boeing 737-800. The new type will enter service on April 11. The new Boeing planes will come equipped with the “Sky Interior,” which has larger window treatments, variable lighting, and larger overhead bins for a little change to your flying experience. The aircraft will seat 175 passengers and will give WN the capability of long-range overwater flights.

Southwest’s 737-800 adventure starts small, with just two aircraft overnighting at Chicago (Midway) and Baltimore/Washington and flying to and from Florida. After that, the 737-800 fleet will grow gradually, adding two more on April 22, two more on May 13, and by the August schedule, WN will have more than 20 737-800s flying longer-haul routes like between Chicago Midway and the West Coast, between Baltimore/Washington and California, and between Florida and Las Vegas. These flights will carry the code “73H.”

Southwest’s first 737-800 flight is scheduled to be flight WN 1717, from Chicago Midway to Ft. Lauderdale/Hollywood, leaving on Wednesday, April 11 at 7:00 a.m. (0700) CST.

In other news, WN yesterday (February 2) changed its schedule by introducing aircraft with the new “Evolve” interior that the company unveiled on January 17, and the 737-800.

The first new type added to the schedule today is the 737-700s with the innovative eco-friendly “Evolve” interior. Southwest’s Maintenance Crews are preparing to install the interiors on the 737-700s in March, and the first few aircraft sporting the new interior until April.

Beginning on April 11, WN will start assigning “Evolve” aircraft to specific lines of flying, starting with 10 aircraft and increasing the number of planes almost weekly. In fact, the number of “Evolve” aircraft will be reaching 100 aircraft by June. WN is using the equipment code “73W” for the “Evolve” 737-700s, instead of the industry-standard equipment code 73G.

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