After years without adding a new destination, Southwest Airlines just announced its second new city in as many months.<\/p>\n
Southwest will land at McGhee Tyson Airport (TYS) near Knoxville, Tennessee, next spring as part of a 14-route expansion.<\/p>\n
In addition to four new routes to TYS, the Dallas-based carrier will add 10 new routes from some of its key bases beginning in March 2026: Chicago’s Midway International Airport (MDW), Nashville International Airport (BNA), Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX) and San Diego International Airport (SAN).<\/p>\n
The new routes are part of Southwest’s latest schedule extension from March 5, 2026 through April 6, 2026. Tickets are on sale now.<\/p>\n Southwest will land at TYS on March 5, 2026 with five daily flights:<\/p>\n Knoxville is Southwest’s third airport in Tennessee after BNA and Memphis International Airport (MEM). Knoxville, located in the western reaches of the Appalachian Mountains, is home to the largest University of Tennessee campus and convenient to attractions like Dollywood and Great Smoky Mountains National Park.<\/p>\n Some could argue that the flights mark a return to TYS for Southwest. The airline’s one-time subsidiary AirTran Airways served the airport from when the carriers merged in 2011 until 2012. AirTran was fully integrated into Southwest in 2014.<\/p>\n Southwest will add seven new nonstops from SAN in March, all of which appear to be a direct response to Alaska Airlines’ recent expansion<\/a> at the Southern California airport.<\/p>\n Reward your inbox with the TPG Daily newsletter<\/p>\n Join over 700,000 readers for breaking news, in-depth guides and exclusive deals from TPG\u2019s experts<\/p>\nKnoxville<\/h2>\n
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Responding to Alaska in San Diego<\/h2>\n
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