Southwest Airlines Community

Not long after leaving Southwest Airlines, our first President, Lamar Muse, started a new airline called Muse Air.  Taking to the sky in 1982, Muse Air almost immediately ran into problems when the big air traffic controller strike limited the number of airline operations.  Nevertheless, Lamar’s effort was notable because it was the first US airline to go entirely non-smoking—long before federal regulations banned the vice.  Muse Air was based in Houston and operated both DC-9-51s and MD-82s and a single MD-83.  Unlike Southwest, it offered assigned seating and a first class cabin.  From Houston, nonstop flights were flown to Dallas, California, and Florida.  Over the course of several years, Muse Air never was profitable, and on June 25, 1985, it was sold to Southwest Airlines for $40.5 million in cash and $20 million in stock to become a wholly owned subsidiary.    The timetable above is the last one issued by Muse before the Southwest purchase.  Herb became Chairman of the Board for both companies, while retaining his CEO and President position at Southwest. This timetable probably was the last one to wear the Muse Air name because, on February 13, 1986, the name is changed to TranStar. It could be argued that TranStar refutes the claim that Southwest has never operated a non-Boeing aircraft.  No 737s from Southwest’s own fleet went to TranStar, and the airline retained the original Muse DC-9s and MD-80s.  Because TranStar was wholly owned by Southwest, Southwest “technically” operated the DC-9 family.  However, the two airlines were separate entities.  Besides the transition timetable above, a variety of promotional material was prepared for the change.   The timetable sized flyer offers a different version of name “morphing” than does the transitional timetable. One graphic starts with a whisper and then screams the new name. And, the biggest change was the adoption of a new livery that was very different than the original Muse livery.  Even with Southwest behind it, TranStar was never a going concern.  It ceased flying on August 9, 1987, and then went under the liquidation process.  In spite of having the resources of Southwest behind it, TranStar was never a going concern.  Yet its legacy lives on in the folks who came to Southwest from TranStar.  ... View more

On the face of it, a small upper Midwestern town on the shores of Lake Winnebago seems like an unusual place to host aviation enthusiasts from all over the world, but Oshkosh, Wisconsin has been hosting the EAA’s annual Air Venture since 1969.  (The event actually began in Milwaukee in 1953.)  And, Oshkosh is the perfect venue for the event, with lots of room, friendly folks, and beautiful summer weather—even the rain on Friday felt nice to those of us from a 100-degree North Texas. If you mix a state fair with a trade show, symposium, air show, you get Air Venture, and I know why some folks spend up to a whole week there because you simply can’t see or attend everything.  Southwest Airlines brought our special Air Venture 2010 aircraft to the show on July 31.  Those of us on the advance team were sweating out the rain all night, but it stopped about 5:30 am that morning.  It was still cloudy in the distance when N948WN, our glossy month-old 737-700, carrying 100 volunteers and special guests broke out of the gloom and touched down on Runway 18 in front of a surprisingly large early crowd at 8:00am.  Because I’ve been part of the great team who has been working on this project since January, it was an emotional moment as the Boeing was pulled into the center piece of the show, Aero Shell Square.  I couldn’t help imagine what many of my Fellow Employees were thinking at they looked out their windows, having left Chicago Midway a few minutes earlier.  They had been lifted from the uniformity of a modern airport to an aviation wonderland where our aircraft would share the ramp with some of the most significant aircraft in history.  Surrounding our modern Boeing was a Boeing from a much earlier age, the magnificent B-17.  Adjacent to the B-17, was one of the ultimate piston-powered airliners, the immaculately restored Eastern Airlines Douglas DC-7B.  Continuing around our 737 was the unique tilt-wing Bell V-22A Osprey, a C-130 Hercules, and immediately in front of us, a massive C-5 transport.  Not far away was one of the few remaining DC-2s in the world. Much more than all of the amazing hardware on display, the big “take away” for me from our participation is the interaction we had with all the people attending the show.  Not long after we deplaned, a long line began to build of folks waiting to tour our aircraft.  For the next seven hours, that line never diminished.  We had set up a tent near the rear of the aircraft where folks exited the aircraft, and we talked to people from Europe and Australia.  Many were aviation enthusiasts like many of us, but others were families from the local area.  I think we were surprised but very proud that so many folks wanted to see our aircraft and to talk with our Pilot volunteers. Meanwhile, the passengers from our ferry flight fanned across the show.   Other aircraft were open for tours, and two that I made a point of going inside were the Eastern DC-7B and the TWA DC-2.  If your aviation geekiness factor is high enough, you will know that the DC-2 was the forerunner of the DC-3 masterpiece.  The “two” is a third smaller, and the DC-3 was the first example of “stretching” an airliner. The DC-7 series had the range to fly nonstop from coast to coast, and the DC-7B was a refinement of the basic “Seven” with greater range.  The final DC-7 was the DC-7C or the “Seven Seas” with longer wings, a taller tail, and transatlantic range.  The DC-7’s production life was cut short by the introduction of the early jets, and they were quickly pulled from service, some with only a couple of years’ service. The military also had a large representation, and here we see Paul Thompson on the flight deck of the C-5 that was parked in front of our aircraft. Other interesting aircraft on display were the Ford Tri-motor—this example was being displayed by one of the show’s sponsors, Ford Motor Company. And we had this, the only flying example of the Sikorsky S-38.  The S-38 was a close relative to Pan American’s pioneering S-40s and S-42s. Not only are the aircraft on display, many of them participated in the daily air show, which is different each day.  This is the tilt-rotor V-22 Osprey. After the show ended on Saturday, we all loaded up into N948WN for the short flight back to Chicago Midway.  Even then, probably a thousand folks had lined the fences along the runway to watch our departure.  It was an amazing event for all of us who attended, and we hope we can return next year. ... View more

Heading to Las Vegas?  The good folks at McCarran International have put together a video to help you navigate around the construction project currently under way.  Click here to watch. ... View more

Southwest Airlines Flight Attendants have always been great ambassadors of our Company and our Brand.  One of my other duties besides managing this blog is serving as our “archivist.”  In the latter roll, I have received a lot of recent requests for photos from the 1970s of our Flight Attendants. These requests have come from publications as different as The Wall Street Journal and Glamour UK.  So, I thought I would share some of these photos from our archives with you.  The one below really is the iconic image of Southwest Airlines’ early days.  Back then, some airlines called their flight attendants, “stewardesses,” but we used the term “Hostess” for our Flight Attendants.  This picture contains a large group of our Flight Attendant staffing at the time. About a year ago, I uncovered a group of negatives that had pictures of our one-year anniversary celebration, and I am including this black and white photo here because it defines our Fun-LUVing Attitude that our Original Employees created. Our inflight magazine at the time, Southwest Airlines Magazine, had a monthly feature called “Hostess of the Month,” and our Flight Attendants were photographed in a variety of scenic spots all across Texas.  The layout included a Playboy-style interview (but not Playboy-style photos!) with similar questions.  We really have come a long way since then. Our Flight Attendants were also used for promotions in the cities we served.  This photo would appear to date from the late 1970s, and it revolves around some kind of “Love” promotion with candy. The last photo reflects our tenth anniversary in 1981, and the Flight Attendants have swapped skirts for hot pants.  However, take a look at those faces, and having fun hadn’t changed.  And it still hasn’t changed. ... View more

Some of you may have noticed recent news stories regarding a minor change that we made to our Contract of Carriage(CoC) verbiage, regarding Force Majeure Events. Unfortunately, early news coverage misinterpreted the language of the revision and led to quite a bit of confusion for our Customers. Southwest has never defined Force Majeure Events in our CoC, so the verbiage is brand new, though the practice is not. In general, a Force Majeure Event refers to something that is outside of our control. We included "mechanical difficulties" as part of our Force Majeure list - referring to events such as airport mechanical difficulties (e.g., the airport de-icing system breaks) or Air Traffic Control issues (e.g., airport or regional tower goes down). We are not referring to our own aircraft maintenance difficulties, which would clearly be under our control. We also included events that we consider an "act of God" (meteorological events) under Force Majeure in our new CoC verbiage. Although we consider both items (third-party mechanical difficulties and meteorological happenings) Force Majeure events, we do not consider any type of mechanical difficulty an "act of God".  Although we understand the confusion, these are actually separate items in the CoC verbiage.   The important message for Customers is none of our procedures have changed. We still accommodate you exactly the same as we did prior to adding the verbiage.   That being said, we heard you! We realize our newest CoC addition could use clarification, so we made a few tweaks to help it read more clearly:   Force Majeure Event:  Whenever advisable due to Force Majeure Events outside of Carrier’s control, including, without limitation acts of God, meteorological events, such as storms, rain, wind, fire, fog, flooding, earthquakes, haze, or volcanic eruption.  It also includes, without limitation, government action, disturbances or potentially volatile  international conditions, civil commotions, riots, embargoes, wars, or hostilities, whether actual, threatened, or reported, strikes, work stoppage, slowdown, lockout or any other labor related dispute involving or affecting Carrier’s service, mechanical difficulties by entities other than Carrier, Air Traffic Control, the inability to obtain fuel, airport gates or landing facilities for the flight in question or any fact not reasonably foreseen, anticipated or predicted by Carrier.  You can read the full contract of carriage here: http://www.southwest.com/travel_center/coc.pdf   We hope that helps clear things up!  As always, thanks for your comments and questions! ... View more

Over the weekend, most of the airplanes arrived, and today (July 26) is the first official day of Air Venture 2010 in Oshkosh, with mass arrivals of several types of aircraft.  Tonight the rock group Chicago will be on stage with the opening performance, but today is all about the aircraft. On our end, we are wrapping up the loose ends and are very excited about our appearance in Aero Shell Square this Saturday.  Our 737 will be open for tours, and it will be staffed with a lot of my fellow Employees, so if you are at the show, stop by and see us.  For you fellow aviation geeks, the airplane will have a special Air Venture decal on the Pilot's side of the airplane. While we are at the show, we will be tweeting, so check out our Twitter account @southwestair.  I will actually be up there a day earlier on Friday with a couple of Coworkers as the “advance party.”  My personal Twitter account is @blogboy, and I will be tweeting from the show on Friday. In the meantime, if you are thinking about attending, full information is available at the EAA’s web site.  This will be our last Oshkosh update until we get on site. ... View more

After blogging about our participation in the 2010 Air Venture in Oshkosh, we took a look at the vintage airliners that will be at this year’s show.  With this update, let’s turn our attention to military aviation : This year's Air Venture theme is Salute to Veterans, and that salute is taking place both on the ground and in the air.  Actor Gary Sinise and his Lieutenant Dan Band will perform on Friday, July 30.  Veterans and active military will receive a free “Salute to Veterans” baseball cap, along with discounted admission all week to the event.  Besides the Lieutenant Dan Band, there will be an incredible number of daily presentations on subjects ranging from the Battle of Britain, the U-2, to presentations on flying the B-17. Speaking of the B-17, it, like the DC-3, is turning 75, and the EAA is hoping that four of the remaining 15 airworthy B-17s will attend the show.  Other World War II aircraft at the show include multiple examples of the B-25, P-51, P-38, P-40, TBM Avenger, Corsair, Wildcat, a PB4Y-2 Privateer, an SBD Dauntless, and the only flying Curtiss SB2C.  From England, several Spitfires and the only airworthy naval variant of the Spitfire, the Seafire XV , will be there.  Moving to the Korean conflict, there will be an F-86, an AD-1 Skyraider, and from England a Sea Fury.  The Vietnam era will be represented by an F-4 Phantom, a MiG-21, an A-4B Skyhawk, a UH-1 Huey helicopter, and several trainers.  Honestly, I have only scratched the surface of the vintage warbirds that will be in the air and on display. In addition, there will be a large number of recent and current military aircraft including the F-15, F-16, F-18, C-5, KC-135, a Customs and Border Patrol P-3, and the Sea Harrier.  One of the aircraft in this category that I am most interested in seeing is the new tilt-wing CV-22 Osprey. For more information on Air Venture 2010, visit the EAA’s web site. ... View more

Travel pro Greg Fischer wrote about his recent trip to Chicago, and he had some nice words to say about the "planes" portion of his trip (and our Bags Fly Free).  Click here to read. ... View more

In our 39-year history, there are only two airports from which Southwest Airlines has withdrawn service and never returned.  One of those, Detroit City Airport, is an airport that we looked at a few weeks ago.  While we don’t currently serve Houston George Bush Intercontinental, we did return once before for a second stay.  And, yes, I know we dropped Denver Stapleton, but in the meantime, it was bulldozed so we did return to the only airport serving Denver, Denver International. By the same token, we dropped service to Austin Mueller when service ended there, but we serve its replacement Austin Bergstrom. The other airport from which we withdrew and never returned is one that may surprise some of our newer Employees because it comprises a brief period in our history.  On October 27, 1978, a press release announces that Southwest will begin service to the Jefferson County Airport (BPT) serving Beaumont and Port Arthur in May of 1979 with four nonstops to Dallas Love Field.  Then on January 9, 1979, the start date gets moved up to March 5.  According to the press release, the station was staffed with 18 Employees plus a Station Manager and Assistant Station Manager.  Oddly enough, the advancement in the start date is due to another Southwest historical anomaly:  our first use of a 727.  This 727 leased from Braniff will free up an existing 737 to operate the BPT service. On March 5, the airport welcomed our President, Howard Putnam (R), with a breakfast.  In the photo above, Jefferson County Judge Richard LeBlanch speaks to the breakfast attendees. As we have seen in some other airport inaugural ceremonies from this timeperiod, our standard approach was to put out a big buffet for first-day passengers.  Flight Attendant Cindy stands ready to help at the table. Howard Putnam (with lapel flower) stands by with Judge LeBlanch as the ceremonial ribbon is cut. There was another photo in the file envelope of the ceremony but it was a bit out of focus so I didn’t have it scanned.  However, in the background was our logo and it was in the same unique script that was carried on our first 727.  That raises the question as to whether we were contemplating dropping the block lettering for all of our signage.  (I love how finding stuff in the archives can both answer and raise questions.) My guess is that the flight probably departed BPT late this day due to the festivities because the timetable called for a ten-minute turn.  Here we see the marching band from Wilson High School that met the first flight, which is taxiing in the background.  From my brief research, I don’t think there is a Wilson High in the BPT area, so did the band come from Woodrow Wilson in Dallas? The inaugural flight arrived and a crowd of media and well wishers meet the flight.  I tried to positively identify the 737-200, using our high-resolution scan but the wing cuts off the bottom portion of the registration number.  My best guess is that this is N28SW based on the curve of the second numeral, but it could also be the second N20SW—both airplanes entered our fleet in 1977. Besides being probably our smallest station, BPT was our shortest-lived station because it closed a little more than a year later on September 5, 1980, and the official reason was “economic reasons.”  Between March 5, 1979 and September 5, 1980, Southwest opened New Orleans, Tulsa, Oklahoma City, and Albuquerque, all bigger markets, and on September 8, just three days later, Southwest returned to Houston Intercontinental.  Deregulation and expansion passed BPT by, but it remains an interesting stop on our corporate timeline. ... View more

Southwest Airlines and The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities Announce Recipients of College Students' Travel Program Southwest Airlines provides travel awards to Hispanic students from all over the nation to continue their college dreams DALLAS, July 22, 2010 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Southwest Airlines, (NYSE: LUV) in conjunction with the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU), announced today the students selected in its annual "Lanzate/Take Off" education travel award program. This year's program, the theme of which is "Dandole Alas a Tu Exito/Giving Flight to Your Success," started in April. More than 1,500 students from across the nation completed the online entry with a submitted essay about why they are pursuing a college degree and how the travel award would help them achieve their goals. The students were selected after intensive evaluation from a panel of judges comprised of college professors and professionals from throughout the country. The award will provide the students with one to four tickets, which the student or an immediate family member can use in the fall to travel to/from a college or university to any of the 69 cities Southwest Airlines serves. "HACU is proud to co-sponsor the Lanzate travel program with Southwest Airlines," said Antonio R. Flores, HACU President and CEO. "For the sixth year, the program has provided students studying away from home the reward of visiting with loved ones. For many students, these visits would not be possible without the support of the Lanzate travel program." With more than 3,000 applicants in the last six years, "Lanzate/Take Off" is a proven successful educational program that serves underprivileged Hispanic students, providing free travel for them and their families to maximize their potential and create opportunities for growth. To read the personal experience from some of the participants, visit Southwest's corporate blog at http://www.blogsouthwest.com/blog/lanzate-and-southwest-airlines. To see the complete list of students, visit: swamedia.com "Lanzate moves students not just coast to coast but from a crazy fantasy to realizing a dream of getting the first college degree in many families! It takes dedicated partners like HACU and the national education selection panel to make this journey." said Christine Ortega, Southwest Airlines Corporate Community Affairs Manager. "As a consequence, the student will have more confidence to pursue his/her dreams of higher education without worrying about the family's economic hardships," said Ortega. ABOUT HACU The Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities (HACU) with national headquarters in San Antonio, Texas, represents approximately 450 colleges and universities, including Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs), which collectively serve two-thirds of all Hispanic higher education students in the United States and Puerto Rico. ABOUT SOUTHWEST AIRLINES After 39 years of service, Southwest Airlines continues to differentiate itself from other low fare carriers--offering a reliable product with exemplary Customer Service. Southwest Airlines is the nation's largest carrier in terms of originating domestic passengers boarded, now serving 69 cities in 35 states. Southwest also is one of the most honored airlines in the world known for its commitment to the triple bottom line of Performance, People, and Planet. To read more about how Southwest is doing its part to be a good citizen, visit southwest.com/cares to read the Southwest Airlines One Report(TM). Based in Dallas, Southwest currently operates more than 3,300 flights a day and has nearly 35,000 Employees systemwide. ... View more

Joe Brancatelli at Portfolio.com takes a look at airline fees.  He takes a look at all the different fees airlines charge and closes with Then there's this: Southwest Airlines has mounted a massive advertising campaign to alert travelers to the fact that it continues to allow travelers to check two bags free of charge. The result: Southwest gained a full point of market share last year, an astonishing growth spurt in the usually glacial airline industry. And, of course, Southwest has been profitable for 37 consecutive years and last week declared its 136th consecutive quarterly dividend. To read his entire post, click here. ... View more

Executive Travel Magazine and their 2010 Leading Edge Awards just honored Southwest Airlines by naming us the best North American Low Cost Carrier for our outstanding Customer Service.  We were also singled out for their Editors’ HONORS for our RNP (required navigation performance) efforts.  In their own words: “In April, two-thirds of Southwest’s fleet began flying with satellite-guided cockpit technology. The airline invested $175 million in the technology and has retrained more than 6,000 pilots—an effort that Southwest bets will pay off when it can expand to fly more direct routes and use more gradual approaches to airports, saving time and money.” To see the complete list of winners, click here. ... View more

Southwest Airlines Offers Nationwide Fare Sale for Fall Travel Airfares Starting as Low as $49 One-Way DALLAS, July 20, 2010 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Fall is on the way and travelers are itchin' to plan exciting getaways! Southwest Airlines (NYSE: LUV) is here to help by offering Customers nationwide airfares starting as low as $49 one-way to select destinations. Take advantage of these super low fares on southwest.com and start planning your fall and winter vacation today! Fares are available for travel Tuesdays and Wednesdays between Sept. 7 and Dec. 14, 2010, excluding Nov. 24, 2010. Fares must be purchased by Aug. 5, 2010. These fares are available only on southwest.com. To get these special online fares, click here. Examples of fares include (see Additional Fare Rules below):     * $49 one-way between Philadelphia and the Boston Area     * $89 one-way between Denver and Minneapolis     * $99 one-way between Nashville and Raleigh Durham     * $129 one-way between Phoenix and Seattle After 39 years of service, Southwest Airlines continues to differentiate itself from other low fare carriers--offering a reliable product with exemplary Customer Service. Southwest Airlines is the nation's largest carrier in terms of originating domestic passengers boarded; now serving 69 cities in 35 states. Southwest also is one of the most honored airlines in the world known for its commitment to the triple bottom line of Performance, People, and Planet. To read more about how Southwest is doing its part to be a good citizen, visit southwest.com/cares to read the Southwest One Report(TM). Based in Dallas, Southwest currently operates more than 3,300 flights a day and has nearly 35,000 Employees systemwide. ADDITIONAL FARE RULES Fares are available only on http://www.southwest.com/?src=PREMNASSALE000000100720. Southwest Airlines fare sales are available for purchase July 20, 2010, through Aug. 5, 2010, 11:59 p.m. PDT, and travel must take place on Tuesdays and Wednesdays between Sept. 7, 2010, and Dec. 14, 2010. Sale excludes travel on Nov. 24, 2010. Fares do not include a federal segment tax of $3.70 per takeoff and landing. Fares do not include airport-assessed passenger facility charges (PFC) of up to $9.00 and U.S. government-imposed September 11th Security Fee of up to $5.00 one-way. Travel to/from Washington, D.C. (Dulles), not included in the sale. Seats are limited. Fares are available for one-way travel. Fares may be combined with other combinable fares. Fares are not combinable with Senior Fares. When combining fares, all rules and restrictions apply. Fares are nonrefundable but may be applied toward future travel on Southwest Airlines. Fares are not available through the Group Desk. Any change in the itinerary may result in an increase in fare. Standby travel requires an upgrade to the Anytime fare. Fares are subject to change until ticketed. Fares are valid on published, scheduled service only. SOURCE Southwest Airlines .   http://www.southwest.com/?src=PREMNASSALE000000100720   ... View more

Southwest Airlines Declares 136th Consecutive Quarterly Dividend Thu, Jul 15, 2010 DALLAS, July 15, 2010  -- Southwest Airlines' (NYSE: LUV) Board of Directors declared a quarterly dividend of $.0045 per share to Shareholders of record at the close of business on August 26, 2010 on all shares then issued and outstanding. The 136th consecutive dividend will be paid on September 16, 2010. SOURCE Southwest Airlines ... View more

  DALLAS, July 15, 2010  -- Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE: LUV) invites you to listen to a live webcast of its second quarter 2010 financial results. Details are as follows:     When:                July 29, 2010 at 11:30 AM Eastern Time                           Gary Kelly, Chairman of the Board, President and     Who:                  Chief Executive Officer                           Laura Wright, Senior Vice President Finance and                           Chief Financial Officer     Web Address:         http://www.southwest.com/investor_relations     Contact:             Investor Relations, (214) 792-4415   A live broadcast of the conference call will be available via the Investor Relations homepage at www.southwest.com/investor_relations. A replay of the webcast will also be available on the Events Calendar in the Investor Relations section of our website. SOURCE Southwest Airlines ... View more

As I mentioned in a previous post, we are all extremely excited that Southwest is participating in this year’s Air Venture at Oshkosh.  I am literally crossing the days off the calendar.  As promised, I’ll be updating you from now until we leave on some of the interesting and amazing events that are planned for Air Venture 2010. I am guessing that a lot of you share my interest in vintage airlines, and in this edition, let’s look at what’s on tap in that category for this year’s show.  Quite frankly, I’m not sure where to begin so let’s start with the Douglas DC-3.  Only the 737 has approached the DC-3 in terms of numbers produced, longevity, and versatility.  To honor one of the greatest airliners in aviation history, Air Venture is celebrating the 75th Anniversary of the aircraft with a reunion.  More than 25 of the approximately 100 DC-3s still in service worldwide will be on display.  (I plan to expend a few electrons in my digital camera on this display.)  Even more exciting is that an example of the DC-2, which was the forerunner of the DC-3 will be on display. Although produced in much fewer numbers and a lott more temperamental than the reliable DC-3, Douglas’s DC-7B represents the zenith of piston-engined airliner development.  The Historical Flight Foundation has restored a former Eastern DC-7B and it will be one of the show’s stars.  On July 28, FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt will join Captain Sully Sullenberger and his First Officer Jeff Skiles for a flight around the Oshkosh area. Another interesting airliner at the show will be the only flying Sikorsky S-38.  This design was one of a series of flying boats Sikorsky built for Pan American.  Next time, I will talk about some of the warbirds on display this year. Tickets and show information are available at the EAA’s web site, and don’t forget their drawing for an airplane.  The proceeds go toward the EAA’s educational efforts. ... View more

Can you point to the place where you first fell in love with the wonder of aviation?  I’m talking about the location to where you would return time and again to learn more about your newfound love.  I can, and the place is Amarillo, Texas and the time is the late 1950s. Across from the current Amarillo (AMA) terminal complex, stands the old terminal (above), also known as English Field.  This was my home airport for eight years.  My guess is that the two-story portion was the original terminal with the ticketing and restaurant wings added at a later date.  At this location, within a few yards of each other were almost all of the city’s main transportation outlets, the original Route 66, the BNSF Railway’s former Santa Fe transcontinental mainline with the San Francisco Chief, and the airport terminal.  Four airlines served AMA back then.  Braniff provided service with Electras and Convairliners (and an occasional DC-6 mixed in) to Oklahoma City, Colorado Springs, Denver, and Dallas.  Central Airways (Southwest’s first president, Lamar Muse, was President of Central) to small cities in the Oklahoma Panhandle and Kansas. TWA was the star of the Amarillo scene and until deregulation was the only Texas city served by the international carrier.  They flew Constellations to St. Louis, Kansas City, and Albuquerque and points beyond.  Then there was my Dad’s airline, Continental, which in 1959 grew from flying DC-3s to Lubbock and Plainview to the elegant English-made Vickers Viscount turboprops to Dallas and Lubbock. (Above) The ticketing wing was to the right of the terminal.  TWA’s counter was at the end of this wing, with Continental next, then Central, then Braniff.  The central portion was the area where passengers waited for the flights to be called for boarding, and it had a unique feature you don’t see in airports anymore.  Off the main lobby, was a glassed in “Television Room” that had rows of seats in front of a TV.  The restaurant had big models of an airplane from each of the four airline’s fleet, and large photos adorned the walls.  Even then, the airport employees complained about the airport food offerings.  It’s sad to see the entrance to the parking lot overgrown with weeds (above).  I can still remember how excited I was to approach the terminal for a family trip or even more exciting spending a day at work with my dad.  If I remember correctly, Continental had a two position counter, and the bag belt took the passengers’ bags out to the bag room next to the ramp.  In between, were two other rooms.  Right behind the counter was the local reservation office.  They had one reservation agent and the station agents also helped with reservations.  This was way before computerized reservations systems.  Then behind the reservation room was the coolest room on earth, the ops office.  Several old-fashioned teletype machines were constantly clanging away with weather info and company/operational information.  Operational manuals were housed in book cases that could be classified as “Mid-Century Airline Modern” style.  A tall rack of radios sat in one corner, and there wasn’t a transistor or silicon chip in sight.  I was fascinated to listen to Air Traffic Control and to Continental’s flights calling in range through all the static and hiss.  The scene was even more special at night.  Dad could always spot a flight on final approach well before I could.  My usual perch to watch the action was on the seat of Continental’s bag tug on the ramp behind the terminal.  The TWA guys would let me climb on their air stairs.  (Above) The hangars belonged to an FBO and were next to the terminal.  Continental had a storage building (okay, it was a shack, on the other side of the runway to the right of the camera position).  It really was a huge thrill to get to ride over to the shack along the access road on the tug.  Too sad, that age of innocence evaporated.  At the height of the Cold War, the Air Force moved a B-52 wing into Amarillo.  The trip to the airport now involved  seeing their shark-like tails all lined up, and taxi time got a lot longer with the gigantic runway (300 feet wide by 13,502 feet long plus 1,000 foot overruns at both ends) needed to handle fully-loaded B-52s at Amarillo’s altitude (3,605 feet above sea level).  Manned bombers as a nuclear deterrent began to be replaced by missiles, and the number of B-52 wings began to be replaced and bases closed.  Amarillo Air Force Base was one of the earliest to be closed, and the city took advantage of all that space and support facilities to create a new terminal.  For awhile, the old terminal was used as an office building and large numbers of aircraft awaiting scrapping were parked on its ramp.  A large portion of USAir’s 727 fleet passed through the ramp on the way to becoming pots and pans. These photos were sent to me a couple of years ago by Dan Wadley, a resident of Amarillo, who was afraid this piece of history would soon disappear.  The years haven’t been kind to the old English Field buildings, and it pains me to see it in this condition.  The railroad tracks are busier than ever, but the pavement that was Route 66 has fallen silent, along with the terminal.  The meadowlarks of the Panhandle are the only flying objects departing this terminal. ... View more

Today's (July 15) Good Morning America on ABC took a look at airline fee's after yesterday's hearings on the subject.  Check out their chart (link above) to see where Southwest Airlines ranks. ... View more

If you know me or have read my posts, you will know that I am a huge, incurable, aviation nut.  I go beyond geek, fan, enthusiast, directly to nut.  I eat it, I live it, I speak it, and I bore others with it.  So when we dotted all the “I”s and crossed all the “t”s with the great folks from EAA’s Air Venture, I wanted to scream, “SOUTHWEST IS GOING TO THE OSHKOSH AIRSHOW.”  For any of you who are like me or who know someone like me, you will know that “Oshkosh” in July is THE place to be.  The Air Venture event is world famous, and it is hard to describe to an outsider. Think of it like this.  Imagine more than 550,000 aviation enthusiasts from 75 countries around the world at a good-sized airport filled with 10,000 aircraft in every conceivable spot on the ramp, the grass, and under the trees.  Row upon row of aircraft ranging from home built aircraft, to classic biplanes, to vintage “heavy metal” war birds, to historical airliners, to high performance military jets, to modern airliners.  Airplanes in every direction, not to mention the lengthy daily flying displays, and you have a partial idea of what Oshkosh is like.  And then, there are all the 1,000+ seminars, more than 800 vendors/exhibitors, and concerts—even a nighttime air show.  I will be blogging regularly about some of the special exhibits and events planned for this year’s Air Venture, so keep tuned, plus we will be Tweeting and blogging from the show. We are really excited about the 2010 Air Venture because this year, one of those modern airliners attending the show will be one of our 737-700s, and it will be displayed at Air Venture’s AeroShell Square on Saturday, July 31, 2010.  We will be offering tours of the aircraft and will have Employee volunteers to meet with visitors, and our experts will be on hand to discuss the new RNP (Required Navigational Procedures) system installed on the aircraft.  Several of us from the Social Media and Marketing Teams will also be there, and we are planning some other surprises for our visit. Come by and check out the special decal on the airplane. The show runs from July 26 through August 1, so if you haven’t made vacation plans yet and are looking for an amazing place to visit, come join us in Oshkosh.  To book travel to Milwaukee, visit southwest.com and to learn more about Air Venture and the EAA, check out their web site, which is packed with information.  You can buy your tickets online at the site. As huge as Air Venture is, EAA is much more than that event because a large portion of their efforts toward educating young people about aviation comes through their Young Eagles program.  To support those efforts, they are raffling an airplane.  For a little as a $1 a chance, someone could win a Aviat Husky with some impressive add-ons, or a number of other great prizes.  All proceeds go to EAA initiatives to light the spark of aviation in our youth, and you don’t have to attend the show to participate.  Click here for more details. In the upcoming days, expect to hear more about what makes Oshkosh special, but until then, check out this EAA video to whet your appetite for aviation’s most amazing event. ... View more

Once upon a time, Southwest Airlines flew to two airports in the Motor City.  We began service to the area with 12 nonstop flights a day to Detroit Metro (DTW) on June 4, 1987.  Ever since the end of World War II, Detroit’s air service had been centered on airports in suburban areas west of the city.  First, all carriers served the new Willow Run Airport (YIP) in Yspilanti until the mid-1950s.  YIP had been built as a large bomber factory during World War II.  Kind of like JFK at New York, DTW Airport was a small facility that was gradually expanded, and while it was closer to the city than YIP, it was still a suburban location.  Also like JFK, DTW’s first service was international with the European flights of BOAC and Pan American.  After the LC Smith building opened in 1957, about half of the airlines moved their operation from YIP to DTW, and for about ten years, half of Detroit’s airlines flew from YIP and the other half from DTW.  By 1967, all YIP service had moved to DTW. However, there was another airline serving Detroit out of a third airport, Detroit City (DET).  This airport was just five miles northeast of the Detroit downtown area, or about 25 miles away from the DTW airport.  From 1966 until 1985 when it went out of business, the Cleveland-based regional airline, Wright Airlines flew between the downtown Lakefront Airport in Cleveland and DET.  Their largest aircraft were Convair 440s.    On September 16, 1987, Southwest and the City of Detroit announced that Southwest will begin service from DET, and on May 4, 1988, Detroit Mayor Coleman Young (the airport will be later renamed the Coleman A. Young International Airport) and Herb Kelleher announce that the service will begin on July 8 of that year.  The city agreed to make improvements to the facility, and they spent $25 million on extending the main runway, renovating the terminal, and adding jetbridges. (The view above is from the DET ramp.)   Service to DET began on July 6, 1988, with Herb and Mayor Young cutting the ribbon.  We offered  13 daily flights, with eight to Chicago Midway, three to St. Louis, and two to Nashville. A breakfast buffet served what the press release called a "Texas-size breakfast," and it also reports that "All present enjoyed live country music played by Tracey Lynne and the Mountain Express Band."  So I would guess that "a good time was enjoyed by all." Since we have so many shots of this particular departure (above), I am guessing that it was our first outbound flight from DET.  The aircraft is N302SW, one of our 737-300s named The Spirit of Kitty Hawk.   After the universally enjoyed breakfast and entertainment, the day to day business of our operation proceeded.  Here we see Passengers entering the terminal from the one gate without a jetbridge. Here's another shot of N302SW, this time at the gate, prior to pushback.  Over the five years that it was open, DET eventually was our primary Detroit operation.  Unfortunately, promised runway improvements didn't materialize, and on September 15, 1993, all our Detroit operations were concentrated at DTW.  At that time, DET had ten daily flights, while DTW had six.  The consolidation brought our DTW operation up to 16 daily flights.  Since 2000, when ProAir pulled out, DET has been without scheduled airline service. We must have over a hundred color slides of the event, but this is one of those times I wish I could go back into history to retake photos to show our ticket counter, the front of the teminal, and some of the other gate areas.  Still, it is exciting to find hidden historical gems, even from what is relatively recent history, and I will keep bringing them to you on Friday. ... View more