Southwest Airlines reports softer September traffic

Southwest Airlines recently announced its operational results for the month of September this year and appeared somewhat downcast at the outcome.
The airline in a statement said that the sale of Southwest Airlines flights tickets was low in September 2012.

The airline reported a softer September traffic saying that fewer passengers boarded Southwest Airlines flights.

While providing the details of its operational results, the airline stated that its traffic (measured by revenue passenger miles) dropped 2.1 percent to 7.76 billion as compared to 7.93 billion in September 2011. The airline further said that its capacity (measured by available seat miles) dipped 1 percent.

Media reports quoted travel experts as saying that the September results were not what they had expected. The analysts had forecast revenue growth for Southwest Airlines to be between 2 percent and 3 percent in September this year.

Southwest Airlines is trying hard to remain competitive amid face-off with its bigger rivals and looking to maintain its depleting low-cost advantage.