Southwest Airlines is dipping its toe into the international market by partnering with with Volaris, Mexico’s second-largest airline. This arrangement is not a code-sharing arrangement that pretends Southwest has started Mexico service, but an hybrid, interline arrangement that allows seamless booking and transfer of baggage.
Bookings will be available though Southwest.com and will be processes as a single transaction from the passenger’s point of view, but behind the scenes will actually be two separate transactions — one with Southwest and another with Volaris.
Passengers will receive separate boarding passes and for the Southwest and Volaris flights. They will have to check in with each airline. Travelers will receive credit card charges from each of the airlines for their share of the flights, so that the total cost of travel will be totally transparent.
Southwest and Volaris are confident that their combined low fares will offer the most compelling pricing available in the U.S.-Mexico market and their focus on customer service will develop strong repeat service.
Plus, passengers will not be subjected to the flim-flam of code-share where travelers feel deceived after purchasing airline tickets, receiving all confirmations, printing out boarding passes and then arriving at the boarding gate to find that they are flying on a different airline from the one where they made their original booking.
The International Connect service, as Southwest calls it, will start in the western U.S. and will be rolled out across the country as the partnership grows with the growth of Volaris’ flights that will provide good connection points for Southwest Airlines flights.
Bob Jordan, Executive Vice President of Strategy and Planning for Southwest Airlines said, “We have worked diligently to create a unique product that will uphold our high levels of Customer Service, stimulate additional revenue for both carriers, and offer great new destinations for both airlines’ customers.”
For many U.S. travelers, Volaris is a new name. They are aboslutely correct.
Volaris is an airline that has shaped itself on the Southwest model and that has been operating for a bit less than five years. Volaris flies a fleet of 21 Airbus A320 family aircraft. It has the youngest and most modern fleet in Mexico reaching 24 airports and 35 routes across the country.
Most important for Southwest was the Volaris commitment to excellent service and single-class treatment in a human way. It’s focus has been customer service and guarantees that before its entry in to the market were unheard of. They guarantee on-time performance and delivery of your luggage with your flight.
This new Southwest/Volaris service kicks off on November 12 when Customers can book service from 20 Southwest cities to five Volaris Mexican destinations (Cancun, Guadalajara, Morelia, Toluca/Mexico City, andZacatecas), for travel starting Dec. 1. The new service will connect through Los Angeles International Airport, Oakland International Airport, and San Jose International Airport and will create up to 85 additional flight itineraries.
Click here for a complete list of possible USA-to-Mexico routes.
Southwest has created an international desk staffed with bilingual Customer Service Agents to support this effort. Customers can call 1-888-329-8776 for assistance with their travel. If calling internationally, Customers can use 011-888-829-8776.
Charlie Leocha is the President of Travelers United. He has been working in Washington, DC, for the past 14 years with Congress, the Department of Transportation, and industry stakeholders on travel issues. He was the first consumer representative to the Advisory Committee for Aviation Consumer Protections appointed by the Secretary of Transportation from 2012 through 2018.
