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Southwest is at it again. The Dallas-based airline has officially announced its 11th airline partner, and it's one that could be new to many U.S.-based travelers: LOT Polish Airlines. If you're unfamiliar, LOT Polish Airlines is a Warsaw-based airline that serves more than 100 destinations worldwide.
Starting September 1, 2026, you can book tickets operated by both Southwest and LOT Polish Airlines that connect through three gateway airports on either coast — but only through LOT. Here's what we know so far.
Introducing Southwest's Newest Airline Partner: LOT Polish Airlines
Southwest has just announced its 11th airline partner: LOT Polish Airlines. This comes mere weeks after it launched new partnerships with Singapore Airlines in June and both TAP Air Portugal and Air Premia in July. Starting September 1, 2026, you can now book a joint ticket combining both airlines through LOT Polish Airlines, travel agents, and travel websites.
Just like with all of Southwest's partners, you can't book these tickets directly through Southwest, which means you won't be able to earn or redeem
This interline partnership opens up many new destinations for anyone living near a Southwest hub. LOT Polish Airlines serves a variety of destinations through Europe, Asia, North Africa, the Middle East, and North America. You can book tickets that connect via joint hubs in Los Angeles, Miami, and San Francisco.
Let's say you live in Denver and you want to head to Bangkok. If you booked a round-trip ticket through LOT Polish Airlines, you can add a stopover in Warsaw free of charge. Your itinerary might look like this:
- Denver (DEN) to Miami (MIA) operated by Southwest
- Miami (MIA) to Warsaw (WAW) operated by LOT Polish Airlines
- Spend a few days in Warsaw
- Warsaw (WAW) to Bangkok (BKK) operated by LOT Polish Airlines
Are there probably more direct ways to get to Bangkok from Denver? Sure, but this is just one example of how an interline partnership can be useful. Southwest isn't listed as an airline partner with online award booking through LOT's Miles & More program, so it doesn't appear you can book award redemptions on these joint tickets, at least for the time being.
Other Southwest Partners
Southwest took its first flight in 1971, but it didn't join any of the three major airline alliances — Star Alliance, Oneworld, and SkyTeam — when they formed in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Southwest never even had so much as one airline partner until early 2025 — more than 50 years after its launch.
Now, in less than two years, Southwest has an impressive collection of 11 airline partners worldwide. Southwest's individual route map is relatively small. It offers flights throughout the U.S., and to select destinations in Central America and the Caribbean. However, thanks to interline agreements with select partners, you can catch a domestic Southwest flight before heading to Europe or Asia without rechecking your bag or going back through security. This makes travel much more seamless.
This model has allowed Southwest to stay competitive with other airlines without launching its own transcontinental flights.
Here are all of Southwest's current airline partnerships:
- Air Premia
- All Nippon Airways
- China Airlines
- Condor Airlines
- Eva Air
- Icelandair
- LOT Polish Airlines
- Philippine Airlines
- Singapore Airlines
- TAP Air Portugal
- Turkish Airlines
Bottom Line
Southwest has made it clear that it plans to let Rapid Rewards members book partner redemptions through its own system, allowing you to earn and redeem points on these bookings. Unfortunately, this functionality isn't available yet, even though Southwest has added airline after airline over the past year and a half.
However, Southwest's 11th partner, LOT Polish Airlines, gives members even more ways to explore Europe and Asia.
