Jefferies found that American Airlines retained a commanding portion of the Dallas domestic market in the second half of 2026, controlling 69% of local share - the same level the carrier held in 2019. Southwest Airlines remained the clear number two with a 17% share, likewise unchanged from 2019.
Dallas is unique among U.S. cities in hosting the headquarters of two publicly traded carriers - American Airlines and Southwest Airlines - and the local air market is split between two airports: Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) and Dallas Love Field.
In Jefferies' breakdown of 2025 capacity, DFW accounted for 82% of originating available seat miles in the Dallas market, with Love Field making up the remaining 18%. At DFW, American held an 82% market share in 2025. Jefferies notes that DFW represents American's largest domestic market, comprising 17% of the carrier's domestic network.
By contrast, Southwest's presence was concentrated at Dallas Love Field, where it controlled a 98% domestic share in 2025. For Southwest, Love Field ranked as its sixth largest domestic market, representing 5% of its domestic network; Jefferies listed the carrier's larger domestic markets as Denver, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Chicago Midway and Baltimore-Washington.
Low-cost carrier Frontier Airlines recorded growth in the Dallas market over the period analyzed. Frontier's share rose from 0% in 2019 to 4% in the second half of 2026. That expansion came largely at the expense of smaller carriers, while the top four ranked airlines in Dallas retained relatively steady shares since 2019.
Capacity originating from the Dallas market expanded more rapidly than the national domestic market between 2019 and 2025. Jefferies reports originating available seat miles from Dallas rose 15% in 2025 relative to 2019, outpacing overall U.S. domestic capacity growth of 10% over the same interval.
More recent quarterly figures were less dynamic: second quarter 2026 originating capacity from the Dallas market was effectively flat year-over-year. Within that quarter, American's capacity was up 1.6% compared with the prior year, while Southwest's was down 0.8%.
Jefferies analysts met with executives from American Airlines, Southwest Airlines and United Airlines at a conference last week. All three carriers reported robust demand, with no evident signs of weakening even after implementing multiple fare increases to offset rising fuel costs.
Context and implications
The Jefferies analysis highlights how concentrated the Dallas domestic market is, with American maintaining a dominant position at DFW and Southwest standing nearly uncontested at Love Field. The data also shows capacity growth in the Dallas market outpacing the U.S. domestic average between 2019 and 2025, while recent quarterly movements reflect only modest shifts in carrier capacity.