For other uses, see Southwest Airlines (disambiguation).
Southwest Airlines
IATA
ICAO
Callsign
WN
SWA
SOUTHWEST
Founded
March 9, 1967; 57 years ago (1967-03-09) (as Air Southwest)
Commenced operations
June 18, 1971; 52 years ago (1971-06-18) (as Southwest Airlines)
AOC #
SWAA304A
Operating bases
Atlanta
Baltimore
Chicago–Midway
Dallas–Love
Denver
Houston–Hobby
Las Vegas
Los Angeles
Nashville
Oakland
Orlando
Phoenix–Sky Harbor
Frequent-flyer program
Rapid Rewards
Fleet size
815[1]
Destinations
121[2]
Traded as
NYSE: LUV
DJTA component
S&P 500 component
Headquarters
Love Field, Dallas, Texas, US
Key people
Bob Jordan (President and CEO)
Gary Kelly (Chairman)
Andrew Watterson (COO)
Founders
Herb Kelleher
Rollin King
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.com
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, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, and has scheduled service to 121 destinations in the United States and 10 additional countries.[4] As of 2018[update], Southwest carried more domestic passengers than any other United States airline.[5] It is currently the third largest airline in North America 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 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.[10][11]
^"Southwest Airlines Fleet Details and History". Planespotters.net. Retrieved December 10, 2022.
^"Southwest Airlines". ch-aviation. Retrieved May 2, 2024.
^ abcdef"Southwest Airlines 2023 Annual Report (Form 10-K)". U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. February 6, 2024. Retrieved March 18, 2024.
^"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.
and 27 Related for: Southwest Airlines information
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Global Information
US$26.1 billion (2023)[3]
US$224 million (2023)[3]