DALLAS— Southwest Airlines (WN) has signed an interline agreement with Air Premia (YP), giving passengers a single-ticket connection between South Korea and dozens of U.S. cities. The deal marks the first time a Korean carrier has partnered this way with the largest domestic airline in the United States.
The two airlines overlap at three West Coast gateways, Los Angeles (LAX), San Francisco (SFO), and Honolulu (HNL), where travelers arriving from South Korea can connect onward to Southwest destinations that offer little or no nonstop service from Korea. Tickets covering these itineraries went on sale on July 8.
Inside the Southwest and Air Premia Interline Deal
Southwest Airlines has entered a new interline agreement with Air Premia, South Korea’s hybrid service carrier.
Andrew Watterson, chief operating officer at Southwest, said Air Premia joins a growing portfolio that expands global travel options for Southwest customers while exposing more overseas markets to the airline’s U.S. network and hospitality.
An interline agreement lets customers book one ticket spanning both airlines and check bags toward their final destination. It does not include reciprocal loyalty benefits or the ability to earn and redeem miles, since those features require a codeshare partnership. For now, the tie-up stays at the interline level.
Yoo Myung-sub, chief executive officer of Air Premia, said the partnership significantly expands travel opportunities for customers and provides access to more than 120 destinations across the Southwest network.
He added that the airline looks forward to expanding the relationship and delivering greater value to travelers across the Pacific.
Where Passengers Can Connect
Southwest and Air Premia share three connecting points on the West Coast: Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Honolulu.
From these gateways, travelers flying in from South Korea can reach Southwest cities with limited or no nonstop Korean service.
Those destinations include Las Vegas (LAS), Chicago (MDW), Houston (HOU), Phoenix (PHX), Denver (DEN), Portland (PDX), and Nashville (BNA). The arrangement opens a wider set of U.S. connections than Air Premia could offer on its own.
How the Baggage Rules Work
The baggage policy runs in one direction, and the reason lies in U.S. entry regulations. Anyone arriving from South Korea and connecting onward must claim checked bags and clear customs at the first port of entry.
Inbound Air Premia passengers connecting to a Southwest flight therefore need to collect their bags at Los Angeles, San Francisco, or Honolulu and recheck them.
Travelers going the other way have it easier. Passengers connecting from a Southwest domestic flight onto an Air Premia international flight can check their bags straight through to their final stop in Korea or beyond.
A Young Carrier Building Its Reach
Air Premia is a relatively young airline that launched its first international route in July 2022. It has carved out a niche flying long-haul routes that most low-cost carriers avoid while keeping fares below those of full-service airlines.
The carrier currently serves Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Washington, D.C., Honolulu, and Tokyo. The Southwest deal gives it a much deeper set of onward U.S. connections than its own route map allows.
Air Premia also holds interline agreements with Korean Air, Thai Airways, and T’way Air, fitting this deal into a broader pattern of stitching together connections it cannot yet fly nonstop.
Southwest’s Expanding Partner Network
Air Premia is the latest addition to a partnership portfolio Southwest has built steadily over the past couple of years. The list now includes China Airlines, Condor Airlines, EVA Air, Icelandair, Philippine Airlines, Singapore Airlines, Turkish Airlines, ANA, and Air Premia.
These agreements give Southwest flyers interline access to Asia, Europe, and beyond without piecing together separate tickets or managing multiple reservations.
For Southwest, the appeal runs the other way as well, since each partnership exposes its large U.S. network to travelers in South Korea and the wider East Asian market.
None of the agreements currently extends past interline status, though the pace of new additions suggests some relationships could deepen into codeshares over time.
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