Airline Merger Means New Opportunities for Destin and the Beaches of South Walton

Southwest Airlines, which provides flights to and from the new Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport in Panama City Beach, planned purchase of AirTran will bring customers from new markets to Destin and The Beaches of South Walton. With the acquisition, Southwest Airlines will operate from 100 different airports carrying 100 million passengers. Southwest Airlines will expand to new routes including International routes, Mexico and the Caribbean. It will gain access to the high traffic hubs of Atlanta and New York, East Coast cities such as Boston, as well as many new smaller markets.