Southwest Airlines Co. may delay any expansion to as late as2014 as $100-a-barrel oil erodes profit growth at the largestdiscount carrier, Chief Executive Officer Gary Kelly said.

Flights and seating capacity at the biggest discount carrierwill be unchanged this year, and “we haven't made a final decisionabout 2013 yet,” Kelly said today in an interview. “I don't sensewe're going to see a significant increase in capacity in 2013, ifwe have any at all.”

Analysts track capacity because a tighter supply of seatsimproves pricing power. With Southwest paying an average of 35percent more for each gallon of jet fuel in 2011, the Dallas-basedairline is under pressure to curb a history of expanding fasterthan its peers. The shares rose the most in four weeks.