CNN SANTA BARBARA, Calif. -- Santa Barbara Airport will have a new airline providing flights in 2021. On Wednesday morning, Santa Barbara Airport announced Southwest Airlines is coming to the airport, starting the second quarter of 2021. Santa Barbara City Mayor Cathy Murillo calls this a "game changer for our entire region". “This news couldn’t come at a better time,” said Murillo. “We see the light at the end of the tunnel with the pandemic, and Southwest will come to Santa Barbara just as we all are eager to travel again.” Southwest provides connecting service to more than 100 destinations in the U.S.