DUBOIS – Southern Airways Express, one of the largest commuter airlines in the country, has announced a new bilateral interline agreement with United Airlines.
The agreement comes on the heels of the relocation of Southern’s mid-Atlantic hub from Baltimore to Washington Dulles, where United’s hub offers more than 230 daily departures.
Southern began its Washington Dulles service on earlier this summer. This partnership means that passengers will now have the opportunity to purchase connections between Southern and United in a single transaction, and upon check-in at the originating airport, to have their checked baggage automatically transferred to their final destination.
Unlike other commuter carriers, Southern’s alliance with United is bilateral, making tickets available for purchase on Southern’s own iFlySouthern.com Web site. Interline tickets are also available on United.com.
Southern began in Memphis in 2013 and has since become one of the largest commuter airlines in America. Now serving 39 cities from Boston in the east to Honolulu in the west, Southern has consistently ranked as one of the most reliable and on-time airlines in the country.
In 2020, Southern’s controllable completion rate was 99.54 percent of all scheduled flights — among the top in the industry. Southern is the parent company of Mokulele Airlines, which has operated inter-island flights in the state of Hawaii for 27 years.
The new interline partnership will allow United passengers to make seamless connections via Honolulu, Kahului and Kona to seven of the state’s smaller communities, such as the islands of Lanai and Molokai, as well as the popular resort destination of Kapalua on Maui.
“Southern’s partnership with United Airlines and all the one-stop connections that our passengers can make at Washington Dulles is transformative for travelers in our community,” said Bob Shaffer, manager of the DuBois Regional Airport.
“This, combined with all of the low-cost carriers at Pittsburgh, gives us more options than we have ever had.”
“It is a tribute to our operations team’s commitment to safety, reliability and on-time performance that has allowed us to become an interline partner with United,” said Stan Little, chairman and chief executive officer of Southern Airways.
“Our interline agreements with American, Alaska and United Airlines now offer thousands of daily connections for Southern Airways passengers.”
Tickets on Southern’s partner airlines are not limited by hub. All three legacy carriers offer Southern Airways connections at both Pittsburgh and Washington.
“We are excited to welcome Southern Airways as our newest airline partner,” said Eddie L. Gordon, Jr., managing director of United’s Washington Dulles hub.
“We look forward to working together to deliver the best experience for our customers traveling to the D.C. region and beyond.”