Why Does Southwest Airlines Rely So Much On The Smallest Boeing 737 Variant?

Very few airlines continue to operate the Boeing 737-700 today, primarily because the jet is an outdated model which offers relatively low capacity and weaker seat economics than other members of the Boeing 737 family. Southwest Airlines, however, is a major exception to this rule. The carrier relies heavily on the Boeing 737-700 for a handful of reasons, starting with the fact that it offers the ideal sweet-spot gauge for the airline’s high-frequency, medium-haul network. The lightweight and nimble member of the Boeing 737 family preserves the airline’s single-type efficiency (as it only operates Boeing 737s) and its performance on short fields also makes it exceptionally valuable to the airline.