Southwest Airlines has announced new initiatives throughout 2025. Some of these changes have been implemented immediately, and others will be implemented in 2026.
On Tuesday, the budget airline unveiled another upcoming plan for next year: a partnership with Germany’s Condor Airlines starting on January 19, 2026.
Get ready to fly with condors
Founded in 1955, Condor Airlines serves nearly 100 destinations around the world, with Frankfurt as its main hub, flying to nearly 70 destinations in Europe, Africa, Asia and the Americas.
According to a joint statement from the two companies, Southwest will offer Condor passengers same-way fares on domestic flights, connecting the two airlines’ schedules at six different airports: Boston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Portland, San Francisco and Seattle.
“Adding Condor to our partner portfolio will bring transatlantic journeys between dozens of airports across the U.S. and exciting and desirable places served by Condor,” said Andrew Watterson, chief operating officer of Southwest Airlines. “In Las Vegas alone, we can leverage the power of our network to connect international travelers with more than 270 daily departures and flights to 70 Nonstop flights to multiple cities. Our airline partnerships demonstrate the passion of our employees, the reliability of our operations and the growing choice of travel experiences Southwest can now offer potential customers around the world.”
Southwest Airlines signs another overseas agreement
Southwest’s partnership with Condor marks its fifth international partnership.
The other four are:
Philippine Airlines has also partnered with Alaska Airlines, the latest deal to come ahead of today’s announcement, which was revealed back in early November.
Southwest Airlines’ list of changes keeps growing
For better or worse, Southwest Airlines certainly won’t stand still in 2025.
New changes and plans implemented by the airline include:
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Expand international flight services
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Transitioning from the usual point-to-point flight pattern to a more traditional hub-and-spoke layout
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Partnering with Priceline to provide travelers with more travel booking options
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expanded its TSA PreCheck contactless ID program to five new locations after a trial in Denver.
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Return to digital baggage checking
“Continuous evolution is part of our ethos, we’ve done it successfully time and time again, and there’s a lot to look forward to,” Southwest CEO Bob Jordan said in an earlier message to customers. “We’re excited, we’re focused, and we’re honored to have you join us on our transformational journey to a better Southwest.”
This article was originally published by Men’s Journal on December 2, 2025, and first appeared in the Travel section. Click here to add Men’s Diary as your go-to source.
