Southwest Announces Its First International Flights to the Caribbean

Southwest Airlines announced today that its first Southwest-operated international flights will begin on July 1, 2014.

This is the first time Southwest-branded planes will be flying to international destinations including Aruba, Jamaica, and the Bahamas. The new routes are as follows:

• Atlanta to Aruba and Montego Bay, Jamaica
• Baltimore/Washingto to Aruba, Nassau, and Montego Bay, Jamaica
• Orlando to Aruba and Montego Bay, Jamaica

Southwest previously traveled to 5 countries on flights operated by subsidiary AirTan Airways.  AirTran will continue operating flights between Atlanta and Nassau, Chicago Midway and Montego Bay, and flights to Cancun, Los Cabos, Mexico City, and Punta Cana.

Southwest plans to operate these flights on Southwest-branded flights in the future.

"Today's milestone enables us to reach new territory, new customers, and build upon a four decade foundation of doing right by the travelers who trust our value and our people," Southwest CEO Gary Kelly said in a statement.

Last week Southwest announced a fourth-quarter net income of $78 million and full-year 2012 net income of $421 million. This marked its 40th consecutive year of profitability.