Southwest Airlines Connects US and Asia With New Partnership

Image: Southwest Airlines has teamed up with South Korea's Air Premia. (Photo Credit: Southwest Airlines)
Image: Southwest Airlines has teamed up with South Korea's Air Premia. (Photo Credit: Southwest Airlines)
Patrick Clarke
by Patrick Clarke
Last updated: 8:55 AM ET, Thu July 9, 2026

Southwest Airlines has partnered with South Korea-based Air Premia to expand travel across the Pacific with interline connections at the two airlines' shared gateway airports in Honolulu, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.

Tickets are available through Air Premia, travel advisors and travel websites, Southwest announced on Wednesday.

Seoul-based Air Premia serves a plethora of destinations in Asia, including Hong Kong, Japan, Thailand and Vietnam. The airline's fleet of Boeing 787-9 aircraft offers two cabins and classes of service.

"Similar to Southwest, Air Premia works to pair value and comfort with high-quality service for everyone onboard," Southwest's Chief Operating Officer Andrew Watterson said in a statement. "Air Premia becomes our latest partner in a portfolio that not only provides more potential global travel options for Southwest Customers, it also exposes more marketplaces overseas to our unmatched network in the United States and our world-famous Hospitality."

"We are delighted to partner with Southwest Airlines, one of the largest domestic carriers in the United States," added Air Premia CEO Yoo Myung-sub.

"This partnership significantly expands travel opportunities for our customers, providing seamless access a network of more than 120 destinations. We look forward to expanding this partnership and delivering even greater convenience and value to travelers across the Pacific," said Myung-sub.

Southwest, which recently added Singapore Airlines as a partner, now boasts nine active partnerships with overseas airlines. 


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Patrick Clarke

Patrick Clarke

Senior Editor

A Maryland native and wanderer who has lived across the U.S. from North Carolina to SoCal, Patrick Clarke graduated from Towson University with a B.S. in journalism. He previously worked for Bleacher

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