Southwest Airlines adds 5 new routes and will restore 16 more that had been cut

Southwest Airlines is rolling out five new nonstop routes as part of its latest schedule extension, which also will see the carrier restore 16 nonstop routes that had been cut.

Southwest passengers can now book flights through Oct. 4 on some of the routes.

California’s Long Beach Airport (LGB) was the big winner in Thursday’s announcement, landing three new routes.

Daily nonstop service from LGB will begin on July 11 to Colorado Springs, Colorado, and El Paso, Texas. The third route – LGB to Albuquerque, New Mexico – starts Sept. 5.

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They join two other two new LGB routes that Southwest had already announced: daily service to Kansas City and seasonal weekend service to Orlando.

LGB is one of the nation’s few capacity-controlled airports where airlines must obtain “slots” to add new flights. Southwest says its latest additions were possible after the airport added "supplemental slots."

Once Southwest’s new LGB flights begin, it will serve 22 seasonal and year-round destinations from the airport with up to 45 daily departures.

Southwest also will add two other nonstop flights to its map. Both begin Sept. 9, when the airline will add seasonal, Saturday-only service between Austin and Jacksonville, Florida, and between El Paso and Orlando.

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In addition to the new flights announced in Thursday’s update, Southwest will restore 16 routes that had been cut in recent years – many falling off the schedule during the depths of the pandemic. A full list of restored routes is below.

The move will resuscitate nonstop routes, including Austin–Pittsburgh, Baltimore–Oakland and Denver–Richmond, Virginia. It follows a pledge by Southwest executives late last year that the carrier would begin bringing back routes and frequencies as part of a broader effort to boost connectivity across the company’s network.

“It’s part of our overall restoration efforts ... responding to demand from Customers,” Southwest spokesperson Dan Landson said in a statement to TPG.

Additionally, eight seasonal routes will return to the airline's schedule as planned. All operate only on weekends and include city pairs such as Buffalo–Sarasota, Florida; Charlotte–Denver; and Chicago Midway–Reno, Nevada.

Southwest says it is not terminating any routes, though some seasonal routes will pause until their planned resumption later schedules.

Southwest’s new Long Beach nonstop routes

• Albuquerque: Daily flights begin Sept. 5.
• Colorado Springs: Daily flights begin July 11.
• El Paso: Daily flights begin July 11.
• Kansas City: Daily flights begin March 9 (previously announced).
• Orlando: Seasonal, Saturday-only flights begin July 15 (previously announced).

Southwest’s other new nonstop routes

• Austin–Jacksonville: Seasonal, Saturday-only flights begin Sept. 9.
• El Paso–Orlando: Seasonal, Saturday-only flights begin Sept. 9.

Southwest’s returning nonstop routes

• Austin–Pittsburgh: Sunday service, resumes Sept. 10
• Baltimore–Oakland: Daily service, resumes Sept. 5
• Charlotte–Houston Hobby: Sunday service, resumes Sept. 10.
• Dallas Love–Philadelphia: Saturday and Sunday service, resume Sept. 9
• Denver–Richmond, Virginia: Daily service, resumes Sept. 5
• Houston Hobby–Lubbock, Texas: Two Sunday round trips, resumes Sept. 10.
• Houston Hobby–Ontario, California: Sunday service, resumes Sept. 10.
• Houston Hobby–Philadelphia: Sunday service, resumes Sept. 10.
• Houston Hobby–Raleigh/Durham: One flight each Monday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday; resumes Sept. 7.
• Houston Bush Intercontinental–Phoenix: Sunday service, resumes Sept. 10.
• Las Vegas–Little Rock, Arkansas: Sunday service, resumes Sept. 10.
• Las Vegas–Minneapolis/St. Paul: Saturday service, resumes Sept. 9.
• Los Angeles–Portland, Oregon: Saturday and Sunday service, resumes Sept. 9.
• Long Beach–New Orleans: Sunday service, resumes Sept. 10.
• Nashville–Islip/Long Island, New York: Sunday service, resumes Sept. 10.
• Nashville–Omaha, Nebraska: Sunday service, resumes Sept. 10.

Related reading:

• Your complete guide to maximizing Southwest Rapid Rewards
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• How to quickly earn the Southwest Companion Pass
• What is Southwest Airlines elite status worth?
• Maximize your airfare: The best credit cards for booking flights
• The best credit cards to reach elite status
• How to change or cancel a Southwest Airlines flight