Southwest Airlines has seen some major changes to its business model over the last year. This has included the introduction of new airline partnerships and now, the airline is adding another.
Southwest Adds its Third Airline Partner
It has been a wild year for Southwest Airlines as an activist investor has taken a major position in the airline which has led to major change at the carrier. This includes positive improvements such as the addition of assigned and extra legroom seating as well as some not so positive changes, like the elimination of free checked bags on most fares.
As part of the changes, southwest has been forming agreements with other airlines to allow for through ticketing on select routes. The first was formed with Icelandair at the beginning of the year and, in June, Southwest and China Airlines announced a partnership.
Now, Southwest has unveiled its third partner airline, which just so happens to operate from the same airport as one of its other partners. EVA Air, Southwest’s newest partner, operates its primary hub at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport (TPE) in Taipei. This is also where China Airlines, the main competitor to EVA Air, operates from.
While both partners just have interline agreements with Southwest, which is the most basic airline partnership, it seems strange for the carrier to have two-thirds of its partners serving the same airport.
Passengers initially will be able to book travel on both Southwest and EVA Air through four international airports on a single ticket. These are Chicago (ORD), Los Angeles (LAX), San Francisco (SFO), and Seattle (SEA).
Ultimately, I don’t believe these interline partnerships move the needle much from a passenger loyalty perspective. Sure more passengers may end up flying with Southwest and EVA Air on trips to and from Taiwan but, I would like to see the airline add some more meaningful partnerships moving forward.
Summary
Southwest Airlines has added Taiwan’s EVA Air as its third interline partner of 2025. This is a bit of a head scratcher as EVA Air’s main competitor, China Airlines, is also has an interline agreement with Southwest. Ultimately, I don’t think this changes much in the value proposition but it is nice to see the airline branching out.
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