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| Founded | March 9, 1967 (as Air Southwest) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commenced operations | June 18, 1971 (as Southwest Airlines) | ||||||
| AOC # | SWAA304A | ||||||
| Operating bases | |||||||
| Frequent-flyer program | Rapid Rewards | ||||||
| Fleet size | 828[1] | ||||||
| Destinations | 121[2] | ||||||
| Traded as | |||||||
| Headquarters | Love Field, Dallas, Texas, U.S. | ||||||
| Key people |
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| Founders | |||||||
| Revenue |  US$26.1 billion (2023)[3] | ||||||
| Operating income |  US$224 million (2023)[3] | ||||||
| Net income | US$465 million (2023)[3] | ||||||
| Total assets | US$36.5 billion (2023)[3] | ||||||
| Total equity | US$10.5 billion (2023)[3] | ||||||
| Employees | 74,806 (2023)[3] | ||||||
| Website | southwest | ||||||
Southwest Airlines Co. is a major airline in the United States that operates on a low-cost carrier model. It is headquartered in Love Field, Dallas, in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, and has scheduled service to 121 destinations in the United States and ten other countries.[4] As of 2018, Southwest carried more domestic passengers than any other United States airline.[5] It is currently the third largest airline in the world based on passengers flown.[6]
The airline was established on March 9, 1967,[7] by Herb Kelleher and Rollin King as Air Southwest Co. and adopted its current name, Southwest Airlines Co., in 1971, when it began operating as an intrastate airline wholly within the state of Texas, first flying between Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio.[8][9] It began regional interstate service in 1979, expanding nationwide in the following decades. Southwest currently serves airports in 42 states and multiple Central American destinations.
Southwest's business model is distinct from that of other US airlines. It uses a rolling hub and point-to-point network and allows free checked baggage. Its fleet exclusively consists of Boeing 737 jets.
The airline has nearly 66,100 employees and operates about 4,000 daily departures during peak travel season.[10][11]
- ^ "Southwest Airlines fleet". Flightradar24. Retrieved November 8, 2024.
- ^ "Southwest Airlines". ch-aviation. Retrieved May 2, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f "Southwest Airlines 2023 Annual Report (Form 10-K)". U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. February 6, 2024. Retrieved March 18, 2024.
- ^ "Southwest Corporate Fact Sheet". Southwest Airlines Newsroom. Retrieved March 10, 2021.
- ^ "2018 Traffic Data for U.S Airlines and Foreign Airlines U.S. Flights". United States Department of Transportation BTS. March 21, 2019. Archived from the original on October 11, 2019. Retrieved October 10, 2019.
- ^ "Southwest Airlines Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2022 Results". www.southwestairlinesinvestorrelations.com. Retrieved July 2, 2023.
- ^ "1966 to 1971". Southwest Airlines Newsroom. Retrieved March 10, 2023.
- ^ "Southwest Airlines – A Brief History". southwest.com. Southwest Airlines Co. 2009. Archived from the original on August 18, 2010. Retrieved January 6, 2011.
More than 38 years ago, Rollin King and Herb Kelleher got together to start a different kind of airline.
- ^ "1966 to 1971". swamedia.com. Southwest Airlines Co. 2011. Archived from the original on June 28, 2011. Retrieved June 1, 2011.
March 15, 1967 Air Southwest Co. is incorporated.
- ^ "Corporate Fact Sheet". swamedia.com. Southwest Airlines Co. October 24, 2019. Archived from the original on April 9, 2019. Retrieved July 2, 2019.
- ^ "Southwest Reports Record Third Quarter Net Income And Earnings Per Share". Southwest Airlines Newsroom. October 24, 2019. Archived from the original on October 24, 2019. Retrieved October 24, 2019.