We Weren't Just Airborne Yesterday

We Weren't Just Airborne Yesterday

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Time flies when you're having fun!

More than 36 years ago, Rollin King and Herb Kelleher got together and decided to start a different kind of airline. They began with one simple notion: If you get your passengers to their destinations when they want to get there, on time, at the lowest possible fares, and make darn sure they have a good time doing it, people will fly your airline. And you know what? They were right.

What began as a small Texas airline has grown to become one of the largest airlines in America. Today, Southwest Airlines flies almost 100 million passengers a year to 63 great cities all across the country, and we do it more than 3,300 times a day.

With over 500 aircraft, Southwest has one of the youngest fleets in the nation, with an average age of approximately nine years. Included in the fleet are three flying killer whales, the “Shamu” aircraft; “Lone Star One,” painted like the Texas flag, to celebrate Southwest Airlines' 20th Anniversary in a style and manner second to none; “Arizona One,” a symbol of the importance of the state of Arizona to Southwest Airlines; “California One,” a high-flying tribute to the state of California; “Silver One,” our 25th Anniversary plane; “Triple Crown One,” dedicated to the Employees of Southwest Airlines for their marvelous achievement of five consecutive annual Triple Crown awards; “Nevada One,” a high-flying tribute to the state of Nevada; “New Mexico One,”