DALLAS (NEWSnet/AP) — Southwest Airlines will limit hiring and stop flying to four airports as it copes with weak financial results and delays in getting new planes from Boeing.

Both Southwest and American Airlines reported first-quarter losses Thursday. Demand for travel remains strong, including among business flyers, but airlines are dealing with higher labor costs and delays in getting new aircraft from Boeing are limiting their ability to add more flights.

The Dallas-based carrier said it expects to end this year with 2,000 fewer employees than it had at the start of the year.

In August, Southwest will stop flying to four airports: Cozumel, Mexico; Syracuse, New York; Bellingham, Washington; and George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, where the airline’s major operation is at smaller Hobby Airport. 

Southwest will also trim flights in Atlanta and at O’Hare Airport, which augments the airline’s main Chicago service at Midway Airport.

The moves will help the airline focus on more profitable locations and deploy a fleet of planes that will be smaller than it had planned. Southwest said it expects to get only 20 new 737 Max 8 jets from Boeing this year, down from the 46 it expected just a few weeks ago. It will offset some of the shortage by retiring fewer planes.

Boeing is struggling with slower production since a door plug blew out of an Alaska Airlines Max 9 in January, and that is frustrating its airline customers.

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