Newark opening hits Southwest at Washington National

Southwest Airlines lost 3 of its slot pairs at Ronald Reagan Washington National in October, following the lifting of restrictions at Newark Liberty International. The carrier returned the slots to United Airlines, which assumed control of them through its 2010 merger with Continental Airlines. Continental had traded the pairs with AirTran Airways in exchange for slots at the then newly slot-restricted Newark airport in 2009. Southwest acquired AirTran in 2010. The trade was nullified with the FAA’s decision in April to lift slot restrictions at Newark from Oct 30. This eliminated the collateral that Southwest provided United under the terms of the deal. "While it was not ideal for Southwest Airlines, it was an agreement that we agreed to in the lease," says a spokesman for the airline. <br/>