Southwest launches 5 new nonstop international routes: see full list now. Published Aug 11, 2026, 4:00 PM EDT James lives and breathes route development. Educated in Air Transport Management at Loughborough University and Cranfield University, James has a PhD in airline strategy. James was Market Opportunity Analyst at London Luton Airport and Chief Analyst at anna.aero. He taught airline strategy and economics to undergraduate and postgraduate students for five years and has worked closely with multiple carriers on route and market intelligence projects. He is based near London, UK. With such a huge domestic market, it is not surprising that the international arena is only a tiny part of Southwest Airlines' considerable operation. Between September 2026 and next March, Cirium Diio data shows that only one in every 45 of the hybrid operator's flights will cross the US border. As usual, some context is important. Southwest's international services are at a record high this year, exceeding the 100 departures milestone for the first time (double for both ways). In the examined period, 81 international routes are available, five of which will launch soon. These five international routes are coming. The following entries reflect what is known as of August 10, and are only for September 2026 to March 2027. As they have all been announced before, this article simply summarizes what is coming. Flights to San Juan (Puerto Rico) and St. Thomas (US Virgin Islands) are excluded as they're places in US territories, and are thus considered domestic. None of the airport pairs are from any of Southwest's top five airports for international departures. The closest is Las Vegas' Harry Reid International Airport (LAS), which ranks sixth, followed by Austin Bergstrom International Airport (AUS), in seventh place. Then there's Nashville International Airport (BNA), which is 14th, and John Glenn Columbus International Airport (CMH), in 18th place. | Start Date (September 2026-March 2027 Only) | Route | Southwest's Operations** | Comments | | November 1, 2026 | LAS to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico | Weekly to six weekly 737-700 | First time for Southwest. However, other airlines have operated before, including American West until 2007, US Airways until 2008, Sun Country until 2009, Frontier until 2021, and Alaska Airlines until February 2026 | | February 13, 2027 | BNA to Liberia, Costa Rica | Saturday-only 737 MAX 8 | A brand-new route | | March 13, 2027 | AUS to San José, Costa Rica | Saturday-only 737 MAX 8 | A brand-new route | | March 13, 2027 | BNA to Aruba | Saturday-only 737 MAX 8 | A brand-new route | | March 13, 2027 | CMH to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic | Saturday-only 737 MAX 8 | First time for Southwest. Seems USA 3000 had very limited flights in 2004 | | / | / | ** Known as of August 10, and subject to change | / | 9 Airports 8,277 Network mi Drag to explore Map: Simple Flying Southwest's international routes from LAS. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Southwest did not fly internationally from LAS until June 2026. In that month, service took off to Cancun International Airport (CUN) and Los Cabos International Airport (SJD). Flights to Puerto Vallarta start next. The planned operation to the capital of Costa Rica, which was to be Southwest's longest international route to date, has been scrapped. It is the only airline between LAS and CUN, SJD, and PVR. The link to the ever-popular CUN was previously served by JetBlue Airways in 2021 and 2022, Frontier Airlines in 2018 and 2019, and Volaris in 2014 and 2015. All three operators pulled out within two years. At least Southwest will benefit from its huge name in LAS and its considerable network from Sin City. When combined with the strong local market of 280 daily passengers, it should do better than the other operators. Southwest's busiest airports for international flights. Between September 2026 and March 2027, Southwest will fly beyond the US border from 23 US airports. In the examined period, the airline's number one airport for international operations is Orlando International Airport (MCO). 1,899 departures are available, with an average of nearly nine daily departures. Nine routes exist: Aruba, CUN, Grand Cayman, Montego Bay, Nassau, Providenciales, Punta Cana, San José, and St. Maarten. Houston Hobby Airport (HOU) is a close second, with 1,843 departures and eight markets: Belize City, CUN, Liberia, Montego Bay, Puerto Vallarta, Punta Cana, SJD, and San José. MCO's maximum daily offering is 11 daily services, which is exceeded by HOU and Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI), both of which have up to 15 daily departures (albeit only very occasionally). Report Error Found an error? Send it [email protected] so it can be corrected.

Southwest Airlines has appointed Jason Liberty and Varun Krishna to its board of directors, effective immediately. Liberty serves as chairman and chief executive officer of Royal Caribbean Group, whilst Krishna is chief executive officer of Rocket Companies, a financial technology platform that includes Rocket Mortgage and Redfin. The board determined that adding two directors with extensive public company leadership experience and expertise in technology, digital innovation, commercial strategy, and financial leadership will strengthen oversight as Southwest executes its strategic priorities. Liberty has served as chairman and CEO of Royal Caribbean Group since 2025, after nine years as chief financial officer. Krishna oversees business strategy at Rocket Companies and previously held senior executive roles at Intuit, PayPal, Groupon, and Microsoft.

Global commercial air travel hit a record on 23 July with 153,359 flights tracked worldwide. The milestone comes during peak summer holiday season and follows strong growth trends, with 2026 passenger traffic expected to rise 5% over 2025. US carriers are benefiting significantly. Delta Air Lines is up 35% this year, whilst United Airlines Holdings and Southwest Airlines have each gained about 19%, outpacing the S&P 500's 13% rise. All three posted strong second-quarter results in July, beating Wall Street expectations despite higher jet fuel prices. Delta expects full-year income of about $73 billion, up 15% from 2025. United raised its earnings forecast to $9–$11 per share. Southwest reported earnings of $0.94 per share on revenue of $8.72 billion, exceeding analyst estimates. Robust demand continues despite increased fares and capacity constraints from Boeing and Airbus production backlogs.