Southwest
Airlines (NYSE:
LUV) is excited to announce that LUV has officially landed at Key
West International Airport (EYW), extending the airline's Florida
presence to the southernmost point of the country in the Florida
Keys. Key West, a popular tourist destination, becomes the
eighth city the airline serves in the state of Florida and the
78th city
added to the airline's vast route map.
Southwest
attributes its entrance into the market, beginning today, to the
roots planted by its wholly-owned subsidiary AirTran Airways.
Southwest will take over AirTran's two daily nonstop departures to
Orlando International Airport (MCO) and Tampa Bay International
Airport (TPA). In addition to the two daily nonstop flights,
Southwest will introduce an entirely new market with daily nonstop
service to Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport
beginning on March 9, 2013. With this nonstop service, Key West
Customers will have access to Southwest's extensive network with
additional connecting service to more than 75 destinations
nationwide. "Our arrival in Key West represents one of the true benefits of our integration with AirTran Airways, allowing us to continue to bring low fares and legendary Customer Service to the Florida Keys," said Kevin Krone, Southwest Airlines Vice President Marketing, Sales, and Distribution. "Key West is a destination our Customers have been eagerly awaiting."
Southwest celebrates its inaugural Key West service today with a nationwide Twitter contest, encouraging the airline's more than one million followers to take part in the historic Sunset Celebration, a Key West staple where local street performers, musicians, and artists venture to Mallory Square to perform for thousands of tourists who have made their way to the docks for the sunset. Followers can submit a video of their talent that they would perform at Mallory Square as they compete for a pair of roundtrip tickets. Submissions should be tweeted to @southwestair with the hashtag #LUVKeyWest. For more information and contest rules, visitwww.blogsouthwest.com/LUVKeyWest.
