History of Southwest Airline

History of Southwest Airline

More than 32 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 more than 65 million passengers a year to 59 great cities (60 airports) all across the country, and they do it more than 2,800 times a day.

They have nearly 400 of the newest jets in the nation, with an average age of 9.6 years. Included in our fleet are three flying killer whales, Shamu One, Two and Three; 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; and the newest member of the family - New Mexico One, also known as Zia, painted in the bright yellow of the New Mexico flag.

In May 1988, we were the first airline to win the coveted Triple Crown for a month - Best On-time Record, Best Baggage Handling, and Fewest Customer Complaints. Since then we've won it more than thirty times, as well as five annual Triple Crowns for 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, and 1996, and no other airline has contributed more to the advancement of the commercial airline industry than Southwest Airlines. We were the first airline with a frequent flyer program to give credit for the number of trips taken and not the number of miles flown. We also pioneered senior discounts, Fun Fares, Fun Packs, a same-day air freight delivery service, ticketless travel, and many other unique programs.

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The Voices of Southwest Airlines1

You never see their smiling faces, but they are on duty 24/7 to provide our Customers with what we call “Positively Outrageous Service.” Of course, I am speaking of our Reservations Sales Agents (RSAs) who have the uncanny ability to convey an unseen smile through a simple telephone line. Yet, there is nothing simple about our RSAs.

Our RSAs are an essential part of our entire Customer