Southwest Airlines Co., typically referred to as Southwest, is an airline based in the United States and the world's largest low-cost carrier.[3] It is headquartered in Dallas, Texas, and has scheduled service to 121 destinations in the United States and 10 additional countries.[4] As of 2018, Southwest carried more domestic passengers than any other United States airline.[5]

Southwest Airlines
Logo (2014–present), consisting of the name "Southwest" in blue letters followed by a heart in yellow, red and blue diagonal stripes
IATA ICAO Callsign
WN SWA SOUTHWEST
Founded
March 9, 1967; 56 years ago (as Air Southwest)
Commenced operations
June 18, 1971; 51 years ago (as Southwest Airlines)
AOC #
SWAA304A
Operating bases
Atlanta
Baltimore
Chicago–Midway
Dallas–Love
Denver
Houston–Hobby
Las Vegas
Los Angeles
Oakland
Orlando
Phoenix–Sky Harbor
Frequent-flyer program
Rapid Rewards
Fleet size
779[1]
Destinations
121
Traded as
NYSE: LUV
DJTA component
S&P 500 component
Headquarters
Dallas, Texas, U.S.
Key people
Bob Jordan (CEO)
Gary Kelly (Chairman)
Mike Van de Ven (President & COO)
Founders
Herb Kelleher
Rollin King
Revenue
Increase US$15.790 billion (2021)[2]
Operating income
Increase US$1.721 billion (2021)[2]
Net income
Increase US$977 million (2021)[2]
Total assets
Increase US$36.320 billion (2021)[2]
Total equity
Increase US$10.414 billion (2021)[2]
Employees
66,100 (December 2022)[2]
Website
southwest.com
The airline was established on March 9, 1967,[6] 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.[7][8] 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 other US airlines as it uses a rolling hub and point-to-point network and allows free checked baggage. It exclusively uses Boeing 737 jets in its fleet.

The airline has nearly 66,100 employees and operates about 4,000 departures a day during peak travel season.[9][10]

Contents
History
Edit
Main article: History of Southwest Airlines
Southwest Airlines was founded in 1966 by Herbert Kelleher and Rollin King, and in 1967 it was incorporated as Air Southwest Co. Three other airlines took legal action to try to prevent the company from its planned strategy of undercutting their prices by flying only within Texas and thus being exempt from various regulations. The lawsuits were resolved in 1970, and in 1971 the airline began operating regularly scheduled flights between Dallas Love Field and Houston and between Love Field and San Antonio, and adopted the name Southwest Airlines Co. In 1975, Southwest began operating flights to various additional cities within Texas, and in 1979 it began flying to adjacent states. Service to the East and the Southeast started in the 1990s.[11] Southwest turned a profit for 47 consecutive fiscal years from 1973 through 2019.[12]

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