American low-cost giant Southwest Airlines unveiled plans to redesign its aircraft interiors and refresh its employee uniforms. Southwest believes these changes will bring a more modern look to its admired brand.

Southwest's New Interior

Southwest's redesigned cabin interior will feature brand-new aircraft seats from RECARO, a well-known brand in the realm of aircraft seats. To bring this new interior to life, Southwest has partnered with Tangerine, a design company specializing in transportation.

The updated interior will arrive installed on new aircraft deliveries beginning in 2025. Southwest also expects to eventually retrofit its existing Boeing 737-800 and 737 MAX fleets with this interior somewhere down the line as well. As shown in the renderings, Southwest aimed to leverage its customers' and employee's perceptions of color and comfort when collaborating to design this new cabin.

The color blue maintains a heavy emphasis throughout the cabin with deep blue tones and sky-blue accents. The Southwest "Heart" logo will continue to be found on the front and aft bulkhead walls. Not only this, but the designs on the carpet also maintain a slight nod to the Heart logo. The seats will also be a deep blue, featuring what Southwest says is a "sunray" pattern. The Southwest Heart will also be debossed on the headrests.

In terms of customer experience, RECARO's new seats will feature adjustable headrests that offer head and neck support. The seat is designed to maximize width and overall support while simultaneously delivering on the promise of ultimate comfort. Each seat also has a personal device holder where customers can mount their devices and enjoy Southwest's extensive selection of free entertainment.

Personal device entertainment has become popular for airlines to adopt in recent years. Airlines like United, American, and Etihad are some examples of carriers that offer such innovations. Having personal device entertainment, in a way, makes the aircraft lighter. This is because, without the added weight of seatback screens throughout the aircraft, airlines can instead install a device holder to which passengers can attach their devices.

This concept is brilliant for a low-cost airline like Southwest, where keeping costs down is key. Southwest offers free inflight WiFi so passengers can connect and stream entertainment.

New Uniforms and Changes

Southwest will also roll out newly designed employee uniforms across its various departments. These include Inflight Operations, Ground Operations, Cargo, and Technical Operations. The new uniforms will be a collaborative effort between Design Collective by Cintas and Bonnie Markel, a uniform brand consultant and fashion stylist.

Although renderings for the new uniforms have yet to be released, Southwest hopes that this upcoming line of apparel will better represent the Southwest brand. Southwest's Uniform Inspiration Team has been keen to deliver its everyday working knowledge and experience to ensure these new uniforms meet their functional and fashion needs.

Aside from new cabin and uniform developments, Southwest has made various improvements to its onboard product and overall experience. Southwest's fleet was fitted with upgraded WiFi by the end of 2023. According to Southwest, the upgraded WiFi enhanced inflight internet browsing with more bandwidth and faster data.

Furthermore, Southwest's newly delivered 737 MAX 8s feature onboard USB-A and USB-C ports and larger overhead bins. In addition to the upcoming new cabins in 2025, these features will continue to be added across older MAX 8 and 737-800s. Southwest has yet to set a concrete completion date but anticipates that adding in-seat power and larger bins will take several years.

The LUV airline has also added various new functionality for its digital platforms and airport kiosks. These include free same-day standby for passengers wanting to switch flights, digital bag tracking, and online baggage check-in.