Southwest Airlines has a large presence at Boston Logan Airport (BOS), Massachusetts. The airline has been operating out of the airport for 15 years and serves a variety of domestic destinations from Gates 31A-35 on Pier A of Terminal B.
Where does Southwest fly the most passengers from Boston?
Southwest will fly to six cities throughout the US this month from Boston Logan International Airport, according to Cirium flight schedule data. This month, the carrier will operate a total of 848 flights in and out of the congested airport, providing Bostonians with 138,960 seats to and from January 2025.
The airline began serving Boson on August 16, 2009, with ten daily nonstop flights to two cities: Chicago (MDW) and Baltimore/Washington (BWI). The town presently has many nonstop routes, with a focus on weekend services. When contacted by Simple Flying for this article, a Southwest Airlines spokeswoman reiterated the airline’s commitment to the city:
“We’ve proudly served Boston for nearly 16 years and offer up to 24 departures a day to 8 cities (Austin, Baltimore/Washington, Chicago (Midway), Dallas (Love Field), Denver, Nashville, Orlando, and St. Louis).”
The airline offers flights from Manchester-Boston Regional Airport (MHT), located less than 50 miles north of Boston in New England, to Orlando (MCO), Baltimore/Washington (BWI), Chicago (MDW), and Tampa.
One flight only.
The route with the fewest seats was to Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS) in Texas. There has only been one reported flight in either direction this month, and both have already occurred.
Southwest Airlines’ final direct flight to Austin, WN1914, flew to Texas on January 4, 2025. The Boeing 737-800, N8787K, with a capacity of 175 people, departed Boston at 13:35, forty minutes after schedule.
However, the plane was able to compensate for the delay and arrived in Austin at 15:36, four minutes sooner than anticipated.
In an unusual turn of events, Southwest Airlines switched out the aircraft for the return flight. The voyage was completed with a Boeing 737-700 (N7843A) with only 143 seats. Operating as flight WN682, the aircraft took off at 11:08 on January 4th and arrived in Boston at 15:37, somewhat ahead of schedule.
The route is quite new. On June 8th, 2024, a Saturday service was reinstated. Initially, it was planned to be seasonal until August. While the flight was eventually extended, this appears to be Southwest’s final nonstop connection for the time being. The carrier formerly ran the AUS-BOS route until December 2022 and plans to resume it in June.
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American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and JetBlue Airways all operate several weekly flights between the two cities, posing strong competition for the route.
Slide into Saint Louis.
Southwest also flies nonstop to Missouri from Boston. This month, the carrier operates 49 flights in each direction between Boston and St. Louis Lambert International Airport (STL), totaling 16,414 seats. During the week, there is one flight per day, with two flights per day on Saturdays and most Sundays. The 4th of January witnessed three nonstop flights in each way.
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Southwest primarily operates the trips with Boeing 737-700s, which accommodate 175 passengers in a single-class configuration. This month’s services will also feature the Boeing 737-800 and Boeing 737 MAX 8.
Southwest competes with American Airlines on this route. Envoy Air runs the flights on behalf of American Airlines, using 76-seat Embraer E175s.
Nashville
Next up comes Nashville, Tennessee, one of the Southwest’s largest cities. In 2024, the airline established a crew base in Music City and made considerable investments in the area.
Southwest offers double-daily service between Boston and Nashville International Airport (BNA), providing a total of 20,898 seats this month. Between January 2nd and 6th, there were three daily flights in each way, apparently to accommodate the demand for holiday traffic.
Southwest Airlines is expanding its presence in Nashville through a partnership with Icelandair, a first for the airline. Icelandair executives told Simple Flying that Nashville was “on the radar as the future opportunities.”
Delta Air Lines and JetBlue are also serving the Boston-Nashville route. Delta operates the route with a mix of Airbus A220-100s and Embraer E175s, while JetBlue employs the Airbus A220-300 and the Embraer E190.
Direct to Denver.
Denver International Airport (DEN) in Colorado ranks third, with 68 direct flights this month. This month, flights between the two cities are scheduled twice a day on most days, for a total of 23,064 passengers.
A third daily flight was added to the itinerary earlier this month and will operate on January 12, 16, 17, 20, and 26. The subsequent Saturdays this month will have only one flight each.
Delta and JetBlue are the other carriers on the route, with both operating daily flights. United Airlines, Denver’s main carrier, operates up to six daily flights between the two cities.
Coming into Chicago Midway
Southwest offers at least two daily flights from Boston to Chicago Midway (MDW) this month, totaling 23,410 seats across 71 flights in each direction. Most days have two flights, with up to four at the beginning of the month, and three in each direction on January 11th.
Surprisingly, the airline does not usually employ the same planes for both directions, resulting in an imbalance of seats. Most days, there will be either 318 or 350 seats in each direction, with smaller flights departing more frequently from Boston.
Southwest’s only unchallenged route from the Massachusetts airport is Boston to Chicago Midway. Other airlines fly from Boston to Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport (ORD).
Big in BWI.
Southwest Airlines’ busiest route from Boston is to its hub at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI).
This month, the carrier will operate 172 flights in each way, totaling 54,865 seats between the two airports. This equates to 5 flights in each direction each day on average, though some days at the start of the month saw as many as 8.
Baltimore has been confirmed as the first hub for Southwest’s relationship with Icelandair. Last year, Icelandair executives told Simple Flying that the new partnership will attract passengers from the US to ReykjavÃk-KeflavÃk Airport (KEF), where they can enjoy a complimentary multi-day stopover before continuing to Europe.
The Southwest arrangement expands Icelandair’s current ties with Alaska Airlines and JetBlue, opening up a number of additional one-stop connections across the United States.
Southwest has a big presence and a long history at BWI, so the many daily flights to Boston come as no surprise. Delta Air Lines and Spirit Airlines are the other carriers on the route, with three and two flights per day, respectively.
Southwest Airlines will expand its flight schedule from Boston later in 2025 to include new cities. The company plans to offer flights to Orlando (MCO) in March and Dallas Love Field (DAL) on Sundays beginning in April.
The airline has increased revenues by selling 36 planes, leasing them back, and using the proceeds to offset future capital expenditures, decrease debt, and give shareholder dividends.