If you have been watching Southwest Airlines and waiting for the right moment to apply, you are not alone. Southwest is one of the most sought-after employers in US aviation, and its flight attendant hiring windows are among the most competitive (and most unpredictable) in the industry.
The short answer to when applications will reopen is: not imminently, and possibly not until 2027. Here is what we know, and what that means if you are planning to apply.
Why Southwest Hiring Windows Are So Rare
Southwest is unusual among US majors in that it rarely needs to go looking for external candidates. Attrition is low, crew satisfaction is high by industry standards, and when positions do open up, the airline prefers to fill them from internal referrals first.
When Southwest does open to external candidates, the windows are famously short. In December 2025, the airline opened an external application window for just 38 minutes before reaching its target of 5,000 external submissions and closing the portal. Candidates who were mid-application when the window closed were simply timed out. In 2021, a four-hour window was considered an extended event.
The practical implication is straightforward: you cannot wait until Southwest announces a hiring window and then start preparing. By the time most people hear about it, it is already closed.
Where Things Stand Right Now
Southwest ran a hiring window in April 2026, and the airline is still working through that applicant pool. The process moves in batches, with candidates sitting waiting for long periods before hearing anything about the status of their application. As of June 2026, a significant number of people who applied in April are still waiting to progress through the application process.
The Southwest recruitment process involves three stages: an initial application review, an on-demand video interview (ODVI), and a face-to-face interview. The process is known to be long. Face-to-face interviews, commonly known as F2F, from the April round are not expected to begin before late 2026 at the earliest, with training classes running through to late 2027.
This timeline matters because Southwest does not typically open a new external hiring window while it is still processing an existing applicant pool.
The TAP Agreement: The Most Useful Signal Available
In June 2026, TWU Local 556, which is the union representing Southwest flight attendants, signed a Letter of Agreement with the airline introducing a one-month voluntary Time Away Programme (TAP) available between August 2026 and April 2027. The programme allows flight attendants to voluntarily bid for a full month of unpaid time away, on top of existing contractual TAP options.
This is published union information, not speculation. And it tells a clear story: Southwest currently has more flight attendants than it needs for its flying schedule. Voluntary unpaid leave programmes are a standard industry tool for managing overstaffing without redundancies, and the fact that this one runs through to April 2027 gives a reasonable indication of the timeframe involved.
Worth knowing: TAP agreements and overstaffing do not mean Southwest is in trouble. The airline’s flight attendant contract remains one of the strongest in US aviation, with a top-out hourly rate of $84.60 by the end of the current contract term in 2027. It means the timing for new external hiring is not right yet. That can change quickly once the flying schedule expands.
What the Process Looks Like
For candidates who are new to Southwest, understanding the recruitment process is worth reviewing now rather than when the next window opens.
The process runs in three stages:
- Initial application – submitted during the open window. This is where speed matters most. Have your resume, references, and any required information ready before the window opens, not after, as it will only be open for a matter of hours, if that long.
- On-demand video interview (ODVI) – an AI-powered video interview completed on your own time after being invited. You record responses to set questions without a live interviewer. Preparation matters here. You should treat it as seriously as a live interview.
- Face-to-face interview – the final stage, conducted in person. Based on the current round, expect a significant gap between the ODVI and the face-to-face invitation.
The overall timeline from application to a potential training class start date can run to six months or more. Southwest training classes are typically scheduled several months in advance, so even a successful application in a future hiring window is unlikely to result in a quick start date.
How to Stay Ready
The candidates who successfully land a Southwest flight attendant role are almost always the ones who were already prepared when the window opened, not the ones who started preparing after hearing about it.
Check out these essential resources below to prepare:
