It's the economy, obviously. Airlines cut capacity but the recession is cutting spending power even faster.
This sale ends on Nov 20 but is good for travel Dec 9 through Feb 28. Fares are $49 to $109 each way for travel Mon-Thu and Sat; or $59 to $159 each way Fri/Sun. And you can buy these fares one-way with no required roundtrip purchase. Fares may be higher for peak holiday and school vacation periods.
Note that New Orleans and Salt Lake City aren't included, no doubt because they filled up plenty of seats in their recent 50% off promo code sale to those cities.
Here's the fine print.
Fares do not include federal excise tax of $3.50 per takeoff and landing, airport-assessed passenger facility charges (PFC) of up to $9, and government-imposed September 11th Security Fee of up to $5.00 one-way.
* Available only on southwest.com and swabiz.com
* 21-day advance purchase is required.
* Purchase November 18 through November 20, 2008, midnight central standard time.
* Travel December 9, 2008 through February 28, 2009.
* Fares do not include federal excise tax of $3.50 for each flight segment. A flight segment is defined as a takeoff and a landing.
* Fares do not include airport-assessed passenger facility charges (PFC) of up to $9.00 and government-imposed September 11th Security Fee of up to $5.00 one-way.
* Seats are limited. Fares vary by destination and may not be available on all flights during key travel dates (12/20/08 - 1/4/09). Seats may be limited to/from FL between 2/11/09 and 2/28/09 due to Spring Break.
* Travel not available to/from New Orleans, LA, Orange County, CA, Salt Lake City, UT,
or Washington (Dulles), DC.
* Offer applies to Southwest Airlines-operated, published, scheduled service.
* This fare is available for one-way travel.
* If combining with other fares, the most restrictive fare's rules apply.
* Tickets are nonrefundable but (except for tickets purchased through our Group Tickets program)
may be applied toward future travel on Southwest Airlines.
* Fares are subject to change until ticketed.
* Any change in itinerary may result in an increase in fare.
