Southwest Joins Delta, United Airlines in supporting iOS 26 Boarding Pass Feature

Ryan Christoffel reports today for 9to5 Mac Southwest Airlines has added support for iOS 26’s boarding pass feature in Apple Wallet. Southwest joins fellow industry stalwarts in Delta and United in supporting the new functionality for jet-setters.

“Saving boarding passes to Apple Wallet makes it quick and convenient to access those passes right when you need them,” Christoffel wrote on Monday. “And in iOS 26, Apple upgraded the experience with three new features… Live Activities for boarding passes can be shared with a single tap, making it easy for friends or family members to track your flight. And by integrating airport maps and luggage tracking right into the boarding passes, Apple has put more important travel info in one place.”

Besides Live Activities, the other two of the three new features in Apple Wallet he mentions are access to airport maps and luggage tracking through the Find My app.

I decided to cover this news partly because, upon reflecting on 2025, it occurred to me I flew absolutely nowhere this year after flying 17 times last year. (I was expecting to fly to places like Detroit and New York City for work-related events, but circumstances at home caused me to cancel those trips.) What’s more, Christoffel’s story is yet one more reminder of not only the utility, but the accessibility, of Apple Wallet. I’ve extolled the virtues of Apple Pay in this regard plenty in the past, but these air travel-centric features can play significant roles in making flying more accessible too. To wit, having one’s digital boarding pass accessible from the Lock Screen is far more accessible than digging for a printed version. (Not to mention passports and other identification.) Likewise, airport maps could be useful in, say, helping people who are Blind and low vision quickly and reliably find their gate after passing through the security checkpoint.

As Christoffel notes, the onus falls on airlines to implement support for iOS 26’s boarding pass feature. Beyond Southwest and the others, American Airlines, JetBlue, and Air Canada all have pledged their support for the future, however undisclosed.

A pro tip from me: While Wallet’s flying features are appreciated, I personally adore using Flighty when I’m flying somewhere. It’s truly one of the best apps I’ve ever used.