Flash Sale: Southwest rolls out deals with one-way fares starting at $49

(Woodys Aeroimages/Flickr)

Just in time for your summer travel plans, Southwest Airlines on Tuesday launched a flash sale with domestic flights starting as low as $49 one-way to select destinations.

The 96-hour promotional event goes through Friday, May 18.

"These fares are so low you can't afford to miss that summer vacation," said Ryan Green, Southwest Airlines Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer. 

The sale starts with tickets as low as $49 on the carrier's shortest flights and increase to $79, $99 or $149 each way for longer routes.

The deals are being offered as the Dallas-based airline has faced a number of highly publicized incidents involving its planes, most notably a deadly engine explosion on Flight #1380 on April 17 during which a window shattered, leading to the death of 43-year-old passenger Jennifer Riordan of New Mexico.

On Tuesday, the carrier acknowledged that ticket sales have been affected in recent weeks and released this statement to KTVU Fox 2: 

"As we noted on our recent earnings call we saw an impact to our bookings following Flight #1380. With this sale we go back into the market with full marketing efforts for the first time since Flight #1380 and are giving our direct distribution model a boost in order to stimulate bookings to our website. "

For Bay Area travelers who want to take advantage of the deals, a sampling of $49 one-way options include: Oakland-Long Beach; Los Angeles-San Francisco; San Diego-San Jose.

For as low as $149, travelers can get a one-way nonstop from San Jose to Houston (Hobby Airport).

As with any good deal, restrictions and exclusions apply including a required 21-day advance purchase. Travel dates need to be from June 5 through Oct. 31. 

And the fares are only good for flights on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, though the deals can be combined with higher fares on other days of the week.