Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Contact Information
Southwest Airlines Co.
2702 Love Field Dr.
Dallas, TX 75235
TX Tel. 214-792-4000
Fax 214-792-5015
Type: Public
On the web: http://www.southwest.com
Employees: 34,378
Employee growth: 5.2%
Southwest Airlines will fly any plane, as long as it's a Boeing 737, and let
passengers sit anywhere they like, as long as they get there first. Sticking
with what has worked, Southwest has expanded its low-cost, no-frills,
no-reserved-seats approach to air travel throughout the US to serve about 65
cities in more than 30 states. Now among the leading US airlines, Southwest
nevertheless stands as an inspiration for scrappy low-fare upstarts the world
over. The carrier has enjoyed 35 straight profitable years amid the airline
industry's ups and downs.
Key numbers for fiscal year ending December, 2007:
Sales: $9,861.0M
One year growth: 8.5%
Net income: $645.0M
Income growth: 29.3%
Officers:
Chairman: Herbert D. (Herb) Kelleher
Vice Chairman and CEO: Gary C. Kelly
President, Secretary, and Director: Colleen C. Barrett
Competitors:
AMR Corp.
Continental Airlines
JetBlue
Company Perspectives:
The mission of Southwest Airlines is dedication to the highest quality of
Customer Service delivered with a sense of warmth, friendliness,
individual pride, and Company Spirit.
Key Dates:
1967: Company is incorporated as Air Southwest Co.
1971: Airline launches first route, connecting Dallas, Houston, and San
Antonio.
1973: SWA posts first profit and begins RUSH cargo service.
1975: Southwest goes public on the American Stock Exchange.
1976: Company is renamed Southwest Airlines Co.
1977: Shares migrate to the New York Stock Exchange.
1978: Herb Kelleher becomes Southwest's outspoken new chairman.
1979: SWA flies outside Texas to New Orleans.
1981: Kelleher is named company president and CEO.
1982: SWA begins flights to West Coast.
1990: Revenues exceed $1 billion, making SWA a major airline.
1994: Morris Air and Arizona One are acquired.
1996: Online booking site is launched.
2000: SWABIZ corporate booking tool is introduced.
2005: SWA enters first ever codeshare arrangement, with ATA Airlines.
New service
On June 27, 2007, Southwest Airlines announced substantial additions to their
route schedule, adding new nonstop flights (mainly out of Denver) which are
slated to begin November 4, 2007.
On February 9, 2007, Southwest Airlines announced internally that it was
planning to restart operations at San Francisco International Airport, a station
the airline closed in 2001.[22] Southwest CEO Gary Kelly has stated that the
airline plans to commence service at SFO beginning in the "early fall" of 2007.
On May 11, 2007, in an e-mail to Rapid Rewards members, Southwest announced that
service to and from San Francisco would begin August 26th with eight daily
nonstops to San Diego, seven to Las Vegas and three to Chicago's Midway Airport.
Southwest also announced that they will be participating in Disney's Magical
Express program in Orlando, FL. The program allows passengers to check their
bags through from their home airport through to their rooms at a Walt Disney
World resort. [23]
Effective November 4, 2007
Daily nonstop service between Albuquerque, NM (ABQ) and Denver, CO (DEN)
begins.
Daily nonstop service between Amarillo, TX (AMA) and Denver, CO (DEN) begins.
Daily nonstop service between Austin, TX (AUS) and Denver, CO (DEN) begins.
Daily nonstop service between Oklahoma City, OK (OKC) and Denver, CO (DEN)
begins.
Daily nonstop service between Seattle/Tacoma, WA (SEA) and Denver, CO (DEN)
begins.
Daily nonstop service between Birmingham, AL (BHM) and New Orleans, LA (MSY)
begins.
Daily nonstop service between San Francisco, CA (SFO) and Los Angeles, CA
(LAX) begins.
Daily nonstop service between Oakland, CA (OAK) and Tucson, AZ (TUS) begins.
Effective February 4, 2008
Daily nonstop service between Buffalo, NY (BUF) and Fort Lauderdale, FL (FLL)
begins. [24]
Daily nonstop service between Raleigh/Durham, NC (RDU) and Fort Lauderdale, FL
(FLL) begins.
Discontinued service
Effective November 4, 2007
Daily nonstop service between Midland/Odessa, TX (MAF) and El Paso, TX (ELP)
ends.
International service
Southwest Airlines has set a goal to begin international services or ticket
international flights in 2009. Services are likely to be operated by ATA.
Destinations may include Canada, the Caribbean, and Mexico. In 2010, plans to
partner with other carriers for transatlantic and transpacific flights. European
service may be operated by Southwest. [25] [26]
The Southwest Effect
Main article: The Southwest effect
A Southwest plane lands in Las Vegas, Nevada. Southwest and US Airways are the
dominant carriers at McCarran International AirportThe success and profitability
of Southwest's business model led to a common trend being named after the
company: The Southwest Effect. Since Southwest's original mission in Texas was
to make it less expensive than driving between two points (in the early 1970s,
during the first major energy cost crisis in the U.S.), it developed a template
for entering markets at rates that allowed the airline to be profitable, yet
only on the basis of lean operations and high aircraft use. The key concept to
the Southwest Effect is that when a low-fare carrier (or any aggressive and
innovative company) enters a market, the market itself changes, and usually
grows dramatically. For example, when fares drop by 50% from their historical
averages, the number of new customers in that market may not just double, but
actually quadruple, or more.
Southwest has been a major inspiration to other low-cost airlines, and its
business model has been repeated many times around the world. Europe's easyJet
and Ryanair as well as Canada's WestJet, are some of the best known airlines to
follow Southwest's business strategy in that continent (though easyJet operates
two different aircraft models today). Other airlines with a business model based
on Southwest's system include New Zealand's Freedom Air , and Malaysia's AirAsia
(the first and biggest LCC in Asia) and Thailand's Nok Air.
Morris Air
One airline influenced by Southwest was Morris Air, founded by June Morris and
David Neeleman, based in Utah and operating in the northwestern U.S. Southwest
Airlines purchased Morris Air and absorbed the capital and routes into its
inventory and service. David Neeleman worked with Southwest for a short period.
When his non-compete agreement expired, Neeleman founded JetBlue Airways, a
competing airline that also incorporates many principles and practices pioneered
by Southwest, including building a positive, warm employee culture and operating
a simple fleet.[27]
TranStar Airlines
Southwest Airlines has mostly pursued a strategy of internal growth, rather than
by acquisition of other airlines as commonly occurs. However, in addition to
acquisition of Morris Air Transport (see above), Southwest did acquire
competitor Muse Air in 1985, which operated McDonnell Douglas MD-80s. Muse Air
was renamed TranStar Airlines.
Icelandair
In 1997, Southwest and Icelandair entered into interline and marketing
agreements allowing for joint fares, coordinated schedules, and transfer of
passenger luggage between the two airlines at Baltimore. Icelandair operated
flights between Baltimore and Keflavik Airport in Iceland. Connecting service
between several U.S. cities and several European cities appeared in the
Southwest timetable [28] The frequent flyer programs were not included in the
agreement. This arrangement lasted for several years but is no longer in
existence.
ATA Airlines
ATA Airlines, one of Southwest Airlines main competitors in the Chicago market,
historically operated out of Midway Airport alongside Southwest. ATA declared
bankruptcy, and in 2004, Southwest injected capital into ATA that (among other
things) would have resulted in Southwest's 27.5% ownership stake in ATA upon
their exit from Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings.
In a departure from its traditional "go it alone" strategy, Southwest entered
into its first domestic codesharing arrangement with ATA, which enabled
Southwest Airlines to serve ATA markets in Hawaii, Washington D.C., and New York
City.
In late 2005, ATA secured $100 million in additional financing from the firm of
Matlin Patterson, and Southwest's original deal with ATA was modified such that
Southwest no longer retained the 27.5% stake (or any other financial interest)
in ATA. The codeshare arrangement, however, continues to remain in place and has
expanded, with some internal controversy, to include all of ATA's 17
destinations and all of Southwest's 63 destinations. In 2006, Southwest's pilot
union approved a codeshare sideletter to their contract with limitations on the
growth of this and other codeshare agreements. While these restrictions today
are minor, outsourcing remains a growing concern in the unions current contract
negotiations.
During 2006, Southwest Airlines began marketing ATA only flights. ATA's
dependence on the Southwest network continued to grow in 2006, and today ATA
offers over 70 flights a week to Hawaii from Southwest's hubs in PHX, LAS, LAX,
ONT, and OAK. Additional connecting service is available to many other cities
across the United States. Plans have been announced for ATA to offer exclusive
international service for Southwest by 2010. Southwest today has taken over all
ground operations for ATA at MDW, OAK, PHX, LAX, and LAS. These contracts
provide that Southwest ramp personnel will now handle all ground operations
(loading of aircraft, ground servicing, etc.) for ATA. The details of these
contracts have not been made public but represent Southwest's and ATA's growing
mutually beneficial codeshare relationship. Presently, there is no plan to open
the ATA/Southwest codeshare to ATA's sister carriers; North American Airlines or
World Airways, even though they are co-owned by the same corporate entity
created from ATA Holdings.
Beginning in February 2005, ATA was run by John Denison, Southwest's former
Chief Financial Officer. Effective January 1, 2007, Denison turned things over
to Subodh Karnik, who is now President and Chief Executive Officer. Denison
remains ATA's Chairman and Chairman of Global Aero Logistics Inc., the new name
of ATA Holdings.
Corporate culture
Intertwined with Southwest's innovative business model has been a consistent
emphasis on the value of people, both customers and employees. From the
beginning of its operations, Southwest urged employees to have fun doing their
work, and to make the experience of flying Southwest not only convenient but
enjoyable.
Southwest experience
The experience of flying on Southwest is quite different from that of most other
U.S. airlines from beginning to end.
Tickets cannot be purchased through common online venues like Orbitz or
Travelocity, although a minority are booked through travel agents. However, most
of Southwest tickets are issued directly by the airline over the phone or online
at the company's website which features Web-only fare discounts.
Unlike other major airlines, Southwest allows passengers to change reservations
without penalty (save the potentially additional cost of the new ticket). While
this provides flexibility to customers, Southwest does not allow same-day
standby travel on a different flight (usually a free service at other airlines)
without upgrading to maximum fare.
Customers are not assigned seats; rather, they are assigned to one of three
"boarding groups" depending on their check-in time (earlier check-ins get to
board earlier), and are left to choose their own seats on the plane, which helps
the airline to board passengers faster. At the May 2006 shareholders meeting,
Southwest management announced a study of potentially adopting an
assigned-seating system in 2008, as part of a reservations-technology overhaul
now under way. In Q4 of 2007, Southwest will announce a new boarding/seating
method.[29] No details of the new boarding process have been released but
Southwest has been testing a new process at the San Antonio airport which
assigns passengers a numeric position in the boarding queue.[30]
As a result of the boarding policy, several independent companies have offered
automatic check-in services for Southwest. These companies take customer's
orders for check-in ahead of the 24 hour mark (when the airline makes a flight
available for online check-in) and transmit the necessary data for check-in to
Southwest as soon as the airline opens up online check-in for a particular
flight. The result of this service is that people using it generally get the
first boarding group (known as the "A" boarding group). These early check-in
sites include iboarda.com and CheckinSooner.com. Southwest has not embraced this
practice and has sued boardfirst.com in federal court with trial set for fall
2007.
Southwest still allows three pieces of luggage to be checked in free as opposed
to the limit of two on the domestic flights of some other U.S. airlines.
In the past, meal service was less than on full service airlines (now often
called "legacy airlines"), with shorter flights receiving just a single small
snack and soft drink, and longer flights (with a duration of about 3 hours or
more) meriting a "Snack Pack" of prepackaged goods. In recent years these meals
in a bag typically exceed the food served on full-service airlines like United
or American. Southwest also offers free in-flight beverages (excluding alcohol).
Although there is no video entertainment, Southwest is known for colorful
boarding announcements and crews that burst out in song. The singing is unusual,
and is quite popular among customers, but has been noted by some travel critics
as being offensive and intrusive.[31]
For all the leanness in comforts, which helped it pass through the post-9/11
travel slump as one of the few profitable major American airlines, Southwest
manages to maintain excellent customer satisfaction ratings. In 2006, according
to the Department of Transportation December year end operating statistics,
Southwest ranked number one (lowest number of complaints) of all U.S. airlines
for customer complaints, with 0.18 per 100,000 customers enplaned. Southwest
Airlines has consistently received the fewest ratio of complaints per passengers
boarded of all major U.S. carriers that have been reporting statistics to the
Department of Transportation (DOT) since September 1987, which is when the DOT
began tracking Customer Satisfaction statistics and publishing its Air Travel
Consumer Report.
Rapid Rewards
Southwest's frequent flier program is called Rapid Rewards. Currently, customers
receive one credit for each one-way trip (even though the flight may have
stopovers). A free ticket, expiring after 11 months, is automatically issued
when a member accumulates 16 credits in a 24-month period. Double Rapid Rewards
credits used to be awarded for online booking, but this policy was modified at
the end of 2003. At that time the bonus was reduced to .5 credit for each
segment booked online, (i.e., each round-trip ticket booked online received a
total of 3 Rapid Rewards credits). This was discontinued in April 2005. In
addition, one-half credit is also earned for using a Southwest partner to book
any car rental and/or hotel stay, regardless of whether a Southwest flight is
involved. This arrangement has won numerous Freddy Awards over the years.
In February 2006, Southwest instituted capacity controls to redeeming its free
tickets. This means that the airline limits the seats offered to frequent
travelers using free certificates on each flight, whereas previously if there
was a seat available, one could use the award, provided the passenger was not
flying on one of the five blackout dates.
In early 2006, Southwest expanded its codeshare agreement with ATA Airlines and
now allows redemption of award tickets on Hawaii flights at the rate of two
awards per round trip flight. Southwest and ATA stress that reward availability
to Hawaii will be very limited. Travelers can also earn twice the normal number
of credits when they purchase airfare on Hawaii-bound flights.
Playful, effective advertising
The company, from inception, employed humor in its advertising. Examples include
"Just Plane Smart," "The Somebody Else Up There Who Loves You" and "THE Low Fare
Airline". The airline's current slogan is "A Symbol of Freedom". A select
history of print and video ads are available on the company website[1].
Since the 1990s, Southwest has been running a television ad campaign based on
the phrase "Wanna get away?" The commercials present comical, embarrassing
situations in which people find themselves wanting to "get away". Most ads are
accompanied by the sound clip "[ding] You are now free to move about the
country"; self-parody of the in-flight announcement that "you are now free to
move about the cabin".
The PA "ding" has become synonymous with Southwest Airlines, and inspired the
name of an online ticket offer program, Ding!.
The Southwest Airlines television commercial, “Flight Attendant,” was named in
Adweek’s ‘Best Spots’ in August 2006.
A Southwest plane at Chicago Midway International Airport"Just Plane Smart"
Shortly after Southwest started using the "Just Plane Smart" motto, Stevens
Aviation, who had been using "Plane Smart" for their motto, threatened a
trademark lawsuit.
Instead of a lawsuit, the CEOs for both companies staged an arm wrestling match.
Held at the now demolished Dallas Sportatorium (the famed wrestling facility)
and set for two out of three rounds, the loser of each round was to pay $5,000
to the charity of their choice, with the winner gaining the use of the
trademarked phrase. A promotional video was created showing the CEOs "training"
for the bout (with CEO Herb Kelleher being helped up during a sit up where a
cigarette and glass of whiskey (Wild Turkey 101) was waiting) and distributed
among the employees and as a video press release along with the video of the
match itself. Herb Kelleher lost the match for Southwest, with Stevens Aviation
winning the rights to the phrase. Kurt Herwald, CEO of Stevens Aviation,
immediately granted the use of "Just Plane Smart" to Southwest Airlines. The net
result was both companies having use of the trademark, $15,000 going to charity
and a healthy dose of goodwill publicity for both companies.
Colorful personalities
Southwest employees are generally well-known for friendliness, (for example, one
pilot is known to greet passengers while playing the banjo); this is often
attributed to a unique "love-based" corporate atmosphere that made chairman and
founder Herb Kelleher a celebrity in the business world. The President of
Southwest is corporate secretary Colleen Barrett, who has been with the company
since day one. Southwest's CFO is Laura Wright. In July 2007, it was announced
that Herb Kelleher will resign his position as Chairman effective May 2008.
Colleen Barrett will leave her post on the Board of Directors and Corporate
Secretary in May 2008 and President in July 2008. Both will remain active
employees of Southwest Airlines.
Southwest has 1,133 married couples. In other words, 2,266 Southwest Employees
have spouses who also work for the company.
Concerns attributed to labor unrest and complaints by the Transport Workers
Union of America (TWU) representing Southwest flight attendants were reportedly
a factor in the recent resignation of Kelleher's hand-picked replacement as CEO.
Jim Parker resigned in July 2004 and was replaced by Chief Financial Officer
Gary Kelly.[32]
Organized labor
Although Southwest is considered a "low fare" airline, it is heavily unionized
compared with other airlines. [33] The Southwest Airline Pilots' Association, a
union not affiliated with the Air Line Pilots Association, International,
represents the airline's pilots. [34] The Aircraft Maintenance Technicians' are
represented by the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association (AMFA).[35]
Airline
The American version of the reality show Airline showcased Southwest Airlines
passengers and employees in daily mishaps and life at some of Southwest's major
airports (BWI, MDW, LAX, & HOU). The show premiered January 5, 2004 on the A&E
Network, but was canceled after 70 episodes on December 15, 2005.
Fleet
An example of a Southwest Boeing 737-700 with the airline's new leather
seatingCurrent fleet
The Southwest Airlines fleet consists of the following aircraft as of September
2007:
AircraftTotalPassengers
(Economy)RoutesNotes
Boeing 737-300194137Short-medium haulLaunch customer
Boeing 737-50025122Short haulLaunch customer
Boeing 737-700293
(132 orders)137All routesLaunch customer
All but 2 are fitted with blended winglets.
The airline operates more Boeing 737s in its fleet than any other airline in the
world; Southwest is often cited as an example of an airline streamlining
operations by having only one type of aircraft. However, Southwest operated
leased 727-200 aircraft during the late-1970s and again in the mid-1980s and
subsidiary TranStar Airlines operated DC-9s and MD-80s during the mid-1980s.
Southwest has been a launch customer for all three of the Boeing 737 variants it
currently operates, and was the first airline to put both the Model 500 and
next-generation Model 700 into service. Southwest has a mix of old and new
aircraft with both its "classic" and "next generation" 737 aircraft. [36]
As of September 2007, Southwest has an average fleet age of 9.8 years,[37] and
fly an average of about 7 flights per day. The average aircraft trip length is
627 miles with an average duration of one hour and 49 minutes. This means the
daily utilization of each plane is, on average, 12 hours and 30 minutes.[15]
Southwest's seats are the same width as any other operator of 737s in the United
States. However seats are approximately one inch narrower than Airbus A320
series operated by low cost carriers such as Frontier Airlines, JetBlue, US
Airways, Skybus Airlines and several other competitors. Southwest's seat pitch
averages between 32 and 33 inches, which compares to average of 31 to 32 inches
for U.S. domestic airlines. However, rival low-fare carrier JetBlue Airways
offers from 32 inches to 36 inches.[38]
Southwest's 737-300 and 737-500 aircraft are not equipped with glass cockpit
technology, as the 737-300s, 737-400s, and 737-500s of some other airlines are.
Instead, the flight decks are fitted with analog gauges, more similar to those
of the earlier 737-100 and 737-200 variants. Note the analog attitude deviation
indicator (ADI) and horizontal situation indicator (HSI) (the blue-colored
instrument and one below it) in this Southwest 737-3H4 and note the electronic
versions of the same instruments (EADI and EHSI) in this United Airlines
737-322. There are electronic displays throughout the cockpit of the 737-700 and
other "Next Generation" 737 variants, and Southwest has programmed their 737-7H4
models to emulate the appearance of the 737-300 and 737-500 for standardization
purposes.
Since production of the 737-300 and 737-500 has ended, recent Southwest orders
have been exclusively for the 737-700 model.
Southwest is the world's largest operator of the 737. Their current active fleet
is over 500 aircraft. In terms of total 737 production (all models in history),
deliveries of new aircraft from Boeing to Southwest accounts for approximately
9% of total production. Southwest has one of the largest fleets in North
America.
Retired fleet
Southwest Airlines Retired FleetAircraftYear RetiredReplacementNotes
Boeing 737-2002005Boeing 737-700Southwest's first aircraft type
Livery
Southwest Boeing 737-500 in the classic livery Southwest Boeing 737-300 in the
new livery The original blended winglets of Southwest Airlines meet the new,
blue variant at Tucson International Airport.Southwest's original primary livery
was beige and red, with orange on the tail end, and pinstripes of white
separating each section of color. The word Southwest appears in white on the
beige portion of the tail. (Although, on the original three 737-200s, from June
of 1971, on the left side of the plane, the word Southwest was placed along the
upper rear portion of the fuselage, with the word Airlines painted on the tail
where Southwest is today N21SW. On the right side, the word Southwest was in the
same place as today, but also had the word Airlines painted on the upper rear
portion of the fuselage.N20SW.
Southwest introduced the Canyon Blue Fleet in 2001, its first primary livery
change in its 30-year history. Spirit One was the first plane painted in the
color scheme. The new livery replaces the primary beige color with canyon blue
and changes the Southwest text and pinstripes to gold. The pinstripe along the
plane is drawn in a more curved pattern instead of the straight horizontal line
separating the colors in the original. The original livery is gradually being
phased out, but three aircraft will remain in the original livery to commemorate
Southwest's original three cities.
Almost all of Southwest's 737-700s have blended winglets, with a few exceptions,
such as aircraft purchased from other carriers or corporations. The first planes
to be fitted with the winglets remain in the plain colored winglet (matching the
stripes on the fuselage), but later aircraft to be fitted have winglets with
"SOUTHWEST.COM" written on them. All aircraft will eventually be repainted to
the ".com" winglets. Special livery aircraft with winglets, such as Shamu, have
plain white winglets.
Additionally, Southwest will install blended winglets on up to 90 of its 737-300
aircraft beginning in mid-January 2007, with AAR of Indianapolis, Indiana,
accomplishing the work. The first modified aircraft, N368SW, resumed service on
February 22, 2007.
Some Southwest planes feature special themes, rather than the normal livery.
These theme planes have been given special names, usually ending in "One". Some
of the most well-known examples are:
Shamu: The three aircraft are painted to look like an Orca, with
advertisements for SeaWorld. (N334SW), (N713SW), (N715SW)
The first aircraft to be painted in the "Shamu" scheme was N334SW (1988), a
737-300, and it was later followed by N507SW (Shamu II) and N501SW (Shamu
III), both 737-500s. Subsequent to the retirement of Southwest's 737-200s,
the 737-500s began to stay within a smaller geographic area formerly
operated by the 737-200s, and as such, Sea World was no longer getting the
optimal national exposure from these two aircraft. Two 737-700 aircraft,
N713SW and N715SW, were repainted as the new Shamu aircraft, and both N501SW
and N507SW were eventually repainted in Canyon Blue colors. All three
current Shamu aircraft are no longer referred to as Shamu I, II, or III. The
artwork on the nose of each aircraft simply states "Shamu". The overhead
bins of these aircraft display ads for Sea World, except towards the front
and back of the airplane, where the bins get smaller and are no longer
uniform.
The Spirit of Kitty Hawk: (1984) Livery and title introduced the Boeing
737-300 aircraft to the Southwest Airlines fleet. This plane is the oldest in
Southwest's fleet. (N300SW)
Lone Star One: (1990) The flag of the state of Texas applied across the
aircraft. (N352SW)
Arizona One: (1994) The flag of the state of Arizona applied across the
aircraft. (N383SW)
The June M. Morris: (1994) In honor of June Morris, Signature and Morris Air
logo on the nose. Logo removed for Canyon Blue repaint. (N607SW, Original,
Canyon Blue)
California One: (1995) The flag of the state of California applied across the
aircraft. (N609SW)
Silver One: (1996) 25th Anniversary aircraft. Originally polished bare metal,
it was later painted silver for easier maintenance. It was then re-painted
with a silver metallic paint. This aircraft also featured silver seats, which
were replaced to conform with the rest of the fleet for simplicity. Silver One
also featured silver heart shaped drink stirrers.(N629SW, Original, Silver
Paint, Canyon Blue)
Triple Crown One: (1997) Livery dedicated to the employees of Southwest, in
recognition of Southwest receiving five Triple Crown airline industry awards
(best on-time record, best baggage handling, and fewest customer complaints).
The overhead bins in Triple Crown One one are inscribed with the names of all
employees that worked for Southwest at the time, in honor of their part in
winning the award.(N647SW)
Nolan Ryan Express: (1998) Commemorative sticker dedicated to famous Texas
pitcher Nolan Ryan who is MLB's all-time strikeout leader with 5,714
strikeouts. (N742SW)
Nevada One: (1999) The flag of the state of Nevada applied across the
aircraft. (N727SW)
New Mexico One: (2000) The flag of the state of New Mexico applied across the
aircraft. (N781WN)
Spirit One: (2001) 30th Anniversary aircraft. (First Aircraft in New Canyon
Blue paint scheme) (N793SA)
The Spirit of Hope: (2004) Dedicated to the Ronald McDonald House. Overhead
bins are covered in artwork from kids at a Ronald McDonald House in Washington
State. (N443WN), (The overhead bins)
Maryland One: (2005) The flag of the state of Maryland applied across the
aircraft. (N214WN)
Slam Dunk One: (2005) Basketball superimposed on side of aircraft and a
different NBA team logo on each overhead bin in the cabin, recognizing
Southwest's partnership with the National Basketball Association. (N224WN)
Southwest received both the 5,000th 737 produced (February 13, 2006) (N230WN)
and the 2,000th "Next Generation" 737 produced (July 27, 2006) (N248WN). The
2,000th "Next Generation" 737 is marked as such in its livery, though the
5,000th 737 is not similarly marked.
Southwest received their 500th 737 on June 28, 2007. This aircraft is marked
to honor this milestone. (N281WN)
All special planes prior to Spirit One originally wore the standard beige, red
and orange livery colors on the vertical stabilizer and rudder. Subsequent
special editions—Maryland One and Slam Dunk One, so far—feature tails with the
canyon blue color scheme, and all earlier specials, with the exception of Triple
Crown One have been repainted to match.
Incidents and accidents
Southwest has had three major incidents of note, one involving a passenger
fatality caused by other passengers providing assistance to the in-flight crew,
and one involving a ground fatality. Southwest Airlines has never had a
passenger fatality due to an accident.
On March 5, 2000, Southwest Airlines Flight 1455 overran the runway upon
landing at Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport, now called Bob Hope Airport,
Burbank, California, injuring 43. The incident resulted in the dismissal of
the pilots, and the plane written off.
On August 11, 2000, passenger Jonathan Burton broke through the cockpit door
aboard Southwest Airlines Flight 1763 while en route from Las Vegas to Salt
Lake City. In their own defense, the other passengers restrained Burton who
later died of the resulting injuries.[39][40] "Unfriendly Skies", A CSI
episode reflecting similar plot elements, aired on December 8, 2000.
Wikinews has related news:
Southwest Airlines flight skids off runway at Chicago's MidwayOn December 8,
2005, Southwest Airlines Flight 1248 skidded off a runway upon landing at
Chicago Midway International Airport, in heavy snow conditions. A six-year old
boy was killed in a car struck by the plane after it had skidded into a
street. There were also several minor injuries reported from passengers
onboard the aircraft and on the ground. Aircraft involved was N471WN which
later became N286WN after being repaired.
Awards and recognitions
The American Brand Excellence Awards recognize leading national brands that
best serve the needs of small- and medium-sized businesses. For 2007,
Southwest Airlines came out tops in the Travel segment, based on a City
Business Journals Network nationwide survey of 1,000 business decision-makers
who evaluated 251 brands.
Southwest Airlines’ Rapid Rewards program was honored in InsideFlyer
magazine’s 2006 annual Freddie Awards for Best Program of the Year, Best Award
Redemption, Best Award, Best Web Site, and Best Bonus Promotion Honors.
For 2007, the eighth year in a row, Business Ethics magazine lists Southwest
Airlines in its “100 Best Corporate Citizens,” a list that ranks public
companies based on their corporate service to various stakeholder groups.
Southwest is one of only 11 repeat winners that have made the list all eight
years
In 2005, The American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) recognized Southwest
Airlines as leading the industry in customer satisfaction. The ACSI, conducted
by the University of Michigan, independently tracks customer satisfaction
levels by measuring the household consumption experience.
Since 2000, HISPANIC magazine has listed Southwest Airlines as Corporate 100
for leadership in providing opportunities for Hispanics and for supporting
recruitment, scholarships, and minority vendor programs.
The Express Delivery & Logistics Association honored Southwest Airlines as the
“2006 Airline of the Year.”
In 2005, American Small Business Travelers Alliance ranked Southwest Airlines
as the "Best Airline Among Small Business Travelers."
Southwest president Colleen Barrett was chosen as 2007's Tony Jannus Award
winner, becoming the first woman to be honored in the 44-year history of the
respected aviation award.
Professional Women's magazine included Southwest Airlines in their 2006
ranking of the "Most Admired Companies Among Women."
According to Institutional Investor magazine, Southwest Airlines ranked number
one in the Consumer category among all airlines as the “Most Shareholder
Friendly Company” based on the effectiveness of Southwest’s governance and
investor relations as part of their overall efforts to maximize share holder
value.
Southwest Airlines took top honors in the ninth Business Travel News Annual
Airlines Survey.
In 2006, Southwest ranked in GIjobs.nets list of 50 military friendly
employers. At number 37, Southwest was the only major commercial airline to
make the list.
In its January 2006 issue, Institutional Investor ranked Southwest CEO Gary
Kelly as one of America's top CEO's. He was ranked best CEO in the airline
sector.
References
^ International Air Transport Association. Scheduled Passengers Carried.
Retrieved on 2007-06-10.
^ Southwest has maintained this rating every month that statistics have been
released.Southwest Airlines Industry Standings
^ Ben Mutzabaugh (2007-01-17). Southwest Posts a Profit for 34th Consecutive
Year. USA Today. Retrieved on 2007-06-09.
^ Gayle Sato Stodder. "Making people count: Southwest Airlines - Company
Profile", 1997. Retrieved on 2007-06-10.
^ Reversed and injunction denied, Texas Aeronautical Commission et al. v.
Braniff Airways et al., 454 S.W. 2d 199 (Supreme Court of Texas, May 13, 1970)
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