DALLAS, March 30, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Southwest
Airlines Co. (NYSE: LUV) has introduced an added
convenience for Customers flying to Hawaii on Southwest Airlines®—an
ability to present evidence of their compliance with the Hawaii
Safe Travels program. Customers who have uploaded an approved
negative COVID-19 test result, required travel information, and
completed a health questionnaire before departing the mainland may
be eligible to bypass airport screening when arriving in
Honolulu (Oahu) and Kahului (Maui). This pre-clear convenience complements
the carrier's approach to serving Hawaii with industry-leading value, comfort,
and Hospitality, and pairs access of pre-trip testing options in
select California cities with a
streamlined arrival into the Islands.
Southwest Airlines is a Trusted Travel Partner of the
State of Hawaii. The program
allows visitors and returning residents to bypass a mandatory
10-day quarantine on arrival provided they have met key
requirements of the program and have correctly uploaded these items
into a traveler profile on the State of
Hawaii website:
- Updated and complete travel information including flight
details for the initial flight segment into Hawaii, all lodging details for each traveler
aged 18 or older (with younger travelers included in the profile of
one parent);
- A valid, negative COVID-19 test result for each
passenger, taken within 72 hours of departure for Hawaii, obtained from a State-of-Hawaii-approved Trusted Travel
Partner; and,
- A mandatory health questionnaire within the Safe Travels
account.
Southwest® Customer Service Agents now are available
starting 90 minutes prior to departure to confirm Customers'
State-of-Hawaii-approved profile.
Completing this verification at a gate before departure allows a
faster arrival on-island. Southwest is offering the new service to
Customers either starting their journey or connecting in the five
California airports from which it
offers nonstop service to the Hawaiian Islands—Oakland;
San Jose, Calif.; Sacramento; San
Diego; and Long Beach,
Calif. The State of Hawaii
reserves the right to re-screen or validate the screening of any
passenger. Visit Southwest.com/coronavirus/Hawaii to learn more about the
requirements, procedures, and pre-departure testing options that
uniquely complement the value of Southwest.
"Our value goes beyond our low fares with no surprise fees, and
our industry-leading* Customer Satisfaction. This Pre-Clear
convenience recognizes that Customers are excited to begin enjoying
Hawaii once they land, and this
process will expedite their time in the airport, allowing them to
begin their Hawaii experience more
quickly," said Tony Roach, Southwest
Airlines Managing Director of Customer Experience.
Additionally, Southwest proudly collaborates with CityHealth
Urgent Care to offer appointments in five California locations for $20 COVID tests (results within 48 hours from the
time of collection) that meet State of
Hawaii requirements. Along with other providers listed at
Southwest.com/coronavirus/Hawaii, CityHealth offers this
affordable testing option to Customers at the airports in
Oakland; San Jose; Sacramento; Long
Beach; and at a location in downtown San Francisco.
With the addition this month of Long
Beach as a gateway with daily service to Hawaii (nonstop to both Honolulu (Oahu), and Kahului (Maui)), Southwest aircraft currently are
scheduled to takeoff for Hawaii 14
times a day from a total of five gateway airports in California. In addition, nonstop service
between Lihue (Kauai), and the Bay Area (Oakland and San
Jose) is scheduled to resume June 6,
2021. Southwest Airlines also operates 24 departures a day
to offer interisland service within the State of Hawaii. Southwest's Hawaii service on Boeing 737-800 aircraft
features spacious seating for 175 Customers and inflight
entertainment that makes time fly while onboard. Southwest
Customers may use their own devices and headphones to experience
free music, free movies, free live and on-demand TV, and free
messaging. These inflight entertainment options are totally
free and don't require a Wi-Fi purchase to access.
(Available only on Wi-Fi enabled aircraft. May not be available
for the full duration of flight. Inflight messaging only allows
access to iMessage and WhatApp, which both must be downloaded
before departure.)
*The Department of Transportation (DOT) ranks all U.S.
carriers based on the lowest ratio of complaints per 100,000
passengers enplaned, as published in the DOT Air Travel Consumer
Report (ATCR). Southwest earned the best Customer Satisfaction
ranking among U.S. Marketing Carriers with the lowest ratio of
complaints to the DOT per 100,000 enplaned passengers for 2020. A
Marketing Carrier is an airline that advertises under a common
brand name, sells reservations, manages frequent flyer programs,
and ultimately is responsible for the airline's consumer policies.
Operating Carriers only handle the flight operations, passenger
check-in/boarding, and baggage handling for the respective
Marketing Carriers they serve—Operating Carriers are not
responsible for DOT complaints related to policies, procedures, and
advertising associated with the Marketing Carrier's brand.
ABOUT SOUTHWEST AIRLINES CO.
In its
50th year of service, Dallas-based Southwest Airlines
Co. continues to differentiate itself from other air
carriers with exemplary Customer Service delivered by more than
56,000 Employees to a Customer base that topped 130 million
Passengers in 2019. Southwest has a robust network of
point-to-point service with a strong presence across top leisure
and business markets. In peak travel seasons during 2019, Southwest
operated more than 4,000 weekday departures among a network of 101
destinations in the United States
and 10 additional countries. In 2020, the carrier added service to
Hilo, Hawaii; Cozumel, Mexico; Miami; Palm Springs,
Calif.; Steamboat Springs; and Montrose (Telluride), Colo. Thus far in 2021,
Southwest has initiated service to Chicago (O'Hare) and Sarasota/Bradenton both on Feb.
14; as well as Savannah/Hilton
Head and Colorado Springs both on March 11; and will begin service to both
Houston (Bush) and Santa Barbara, Calif. on April 12; Fresno,
Calif. on April
25; Destin/Ft. Walton Beach on May 6; Myrtle Beach,
S.C. on May 23; Bozeman, Mont. on May
27; and Jackson, Miss. on June 6. The Company also
has announced an intention to initiate new service to Eugene, Ore., and Bellingham, Wash., later this year.
The carrier issued its Southwest® Promise in
May 2020 to highlight new and
round-the-clock efforts to support its Customers and Employees
well-being and comfort. Among the changes are enhanced cleaning
efforts at airports and onboard aircraft, along with a federal
mandate requiring every person to wear a mask at all times
throughout each flight. Additional details about the Southwest
Promise are available
at Southwest.com/Promise.
Southwest coined Transfarency® to describe its
purposed philosophy of treating Customers honestly and fairly, and
low fares actually staying low. Southwest is the only major U.S.
airline to offer bags fly free® to everyone (first and
second checked pieces of luggage, size and weight limits apply,
some carriers offer free checked bags on select routes or in
qualified circumstances). Southwest does not charge change fees,
though fare differences might apply.
Southwest is one of the most honored airlines in the world,
known for a triple bottom line approach that contributes to the
carrier's performance and productivity, the importance of
its People and the communities they serve, and an overall
commitment to efficiency and the planet. Learn more about how the
carrier gives back to communities across the world by
visiting Southwest.com/citizenship.
Book Southwest Airlines' low fares online at
Southwest.com or by phone at 800-I-FLY-SWA.
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SOURCE Southwest Airlines Co.