As the world’s largest budget operator by fleet size, and one of the biggest US carriers of any kind, 
Southwest Airlines has an incredibly diverse route network. This consists of both domestic and international flights, with some of those serving Hawaii being nearly 3,000 miles (4,828 km) long.
However, the blue-liveried budget airline also has an important role to play on some of the shortest domestic connections in America, with two of its routes this month being under 100 miles (161 km) long. Using data from Cirium, an aviation analytics company, let’s examine Southwest’s shortest routes.
Colorado Is Home To Southwest’s Shortest Route
According to Cirium, the shortest flights scheduled to be operated by Southwest Airlines in October of 2025 have a distance of just 72 miles (116 km). The corridor in question connects 
Denver International Airport (DEN) with Colorado Springs (COS), and there are 97 flights in each direction this month. This equates to an average of just over three per day, with peaks of four on October 5, 12, 19, and 26 (Sundays).
Southwest Airlines uses three different variants of the Boeing 737 family to serve its shortest route, with a relatively even split between the trio. The models in question are the 737-700, 737-800, and 737 MAX 8, which respectively seat 143, 175, and 175 passengers according to fleet data made available by aeroLOPA. The latter model is the subject of various passenger experience boosts, as Southwest explains:
“In-seat power ports and larger overhead bins [will be] on all new 737 MAX 8 aircraft delivered to Southwest. [The airline is] in the process of adding them to our existing planes.”
Intra-Hawaii Hops
While Southwest Airlines’ shortest flights this month are contained within the US state of Colorado, its second-shortest route can be found far to the west in Hawaii. The corridor in question here is just 84 miles (135 km) long, and links Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport at Keāhole (KOA) with Kahului (OGG) in Maui. Southwest’s aircraft of choice is the 
Boeing 737 MAX 8, and it serves the route daily.
According to fleet data made available by ch-aviation, Southwest Airlines presently has 813 aircraft from the Boeing 737 family at its disposal. Of these, 284 are examples of the 737 MAX 8 model (with an average age of just 3.4 years old compared to a fleet-wide mean of 9.2), and the carrier has outstanding orders for another 197 units of the type. It has also ordered 274 MAX 7s, but these remain uncertified.
Kona to Maui isn’t the only short route within Hawaii that Southwest is serving this month. Indeed, it also flies its Boeing 737 MAX 8s from Honolulu (HNL) to Hilo (ITO), Kona, Lihue (LIH), and Maui, as well as from Lihue to Maui. All of these routes are served at least daily, but Honolulu to Maui takes the cake in terms of frequency, with eight flights a day in each direction on this 101-mile (162.5 km) corridor.
The Best Of The Rest
Within Florida, Southwest Airlines will operate two flights a day in each direction between Orlando International Airport (MCO) and Sarasota (SRQ) this month, with the frequency dropping to just one on October 31. This route is 104 miles (167.4 km) long, and will see all three 737 variants.
Likewise, Southwest Airlines will also be operating a twice-daily service all through the month on the 120-mile (193 km) corridor from Baltimore / Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI) in Maryland to Richmond (RIC) in Virginia this October. Once again, the carrier will deploy all three of its Boeing 737 variants to cover this capacity, although the 737-700 will be by far the dominant model.
The final route that we shall cover in this analysis sees us return to Florida, and takes the form of the 133-mile (214 km) corridor from Fort Myers (RSW) to Orlando. Much like Orlando to Sarasota, Southwest plans to serve this route twice a day in October 2025 before dropping to just the one round trip on the last day of the month. Once again, the 737-700 accounts for the most flights, but all three models are used.
