Southwest Airlines resumes nonstop flights between Chicago Midway and Indianapolis

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Southwest Airlines resumes nonstop flights between Chicago Midway and Indianapolis

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Simple Flying | Simple Flying

By Sky Industry News

Dec 18, 2024

Southwest Airlines will resume nonstop flights between Chicago Midway and Indianapolis International Airport in August 2025, marking the end of a five-year hiatus. The airline will operate a twice-daily year-round service on this route. Additionally, Southwest plans to introduce direct flights to Nashville from Indianapolis next spring.

Chicago Midway will become Southwest's 20th destination from Indianapolis International Airport. This move reconnects the two airports after nearly five years since the last operation of this route in 2020. Mario Rodriguez, executive director of the Indianapolis Airport Authority (IAA), stated that this will be the airport's 52nd nonstop destination. Currently, Southwest is the only airline offering flights from Indianapolis to Chicago's secondary airport.

According to aviation analytics firm Cirium, American Airlines and United Airlines both provide services between Chicago O'Hare and Indianapolis. United operates up to seven daily flights while American offers up to five daily flights.

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Maggie Cunningham, IAA director of air service and airport experience, remarked, "Chicago Midway gives Hoosiers more access to Southwest’s destinations across the United States and beyond enabling easier travel for both business and leisure needs."

Southwest currently flies to 18 destinations out of Indianapolis including Atlanta, Austin, Baltimore, Cancun, Dallas Love Field, Denver among others. The carrier is also dominant at Chicago Midway with an extensive network covering almost 70 year-round destinations.

The new double-daily service by Southwest is expected to offer nearly 10,000 monthly seats each way using its Boeing 737-700 and Boeing 737-800 fleet. Flights from Indianapolis are scheduled at 07:30 and 16:50 while departures from Chicago Midway are set for 10:00 and 20:25.

Next year will also see the launch of another destination from Indianapolis with daily flights to Nashville starting March 6th. This connection has been pursued by IAA for over seven years.

Southwest's announcement is part of a broader network expansion next summer which includes eight new or restarted routes commencing in August 2025. Among these are connections involving Orlando International Airport which remains one of Florida’s busiest airports.

Tickets for Southwest's expanded network next summer are available until October 1st, 2025. The airline plans to implement a new seat selection option in early 2026 allowing passengers pre-assigned seating before their flight.