Southwest Airlines, embarked upon a new chapter in a 35-year partnership with California travelers today.
Southwest® celebrates inaugural service at Long Beach Airport, the carrier’s 98th city served, now offering service in all five major commercial airports in the L.A. Basin with four flights a day to and from the Bay Area nonstop between Long Beach and Oakland.
“Southwest’s arrival in Long Beach brings much needed competition not just with our unique value and unparalleled Customer Service, but with unmatched access to the rest of the country through our Oakland gateway,” said Paul Cullen, Southwest Airlines’ Vice President of Corporate Planning and Financial Planning and Analysis, at a morning news conference before the airport’s first Southwest departure. “The initial schedule for Long Beach offers long reach with easy connections to 19 cities through our four flights a day to Oakland.”
“I’m thrilled to welcome Southwest Airlines to Long Beach,” said Mayor Garcia. “This is an exciting and positive development for our city and the entire region, and one more great reason to fly through Long Beach Airport.”
“We are delighted to welcome this new partner and one of the most recognizable airline carriers to Long Beach,” said Stacy Mungo, Long Beach Councilwoman. “At the center of Southwest’s business model are people and culture, which is only fitting given our city’s unique sense of community.”
“Southwest is a welcomed addition to Long Beach Airport, where our customers value the convenience and excellent customer service that we provide,” said Juan López-Rios, Interim Director. “We are proud to be able to provide that same service to our Southwest customers as they enjoy the relaxed travel experience for which LGB is known.”
Beginning today, Southwest offers a peak summer schedule of nearly 60 flights a day in each direction between Oakland and Southern California’s five airports in the greater L.A. region, plus San Diego. Last week, Southwest filed an application for route authority to add new daily international service later this year from LAX to Cancun, Puerto Vallarta, and San Jose del Cabo/Los Cabos in Mexico, alongside daily service to Costa Rica which began in April.
Southwest also flies internationally from John Wayne Airport in Orange County to Mexico City, Puerto Vallarta, and San Jose del Cabo/Los Cabos.
