Southwest Airlines Community

Andy - you say you cringe about a flight to Hawaii...what about our flight service from Hartford (BDL) to Las Vegas which is scheduled at 5 hours and 45 minutes. I think you could get to Hawaii from LAX in about 5 hours...I think. I'm working that flight later in the month...all I have to say is be sure your DVD & Laptop batteries are FULLY charged...and bring a snack, if you get hungrier for something than we are able to serve. Hope to see you all in the SWA Luv Jets soon! James MDW FA ... View more

Sue - We actually "top" out at 12 years at around 52.00 a trip. The monthly lines can be built between 80 and 130 trips a month. I hope this helps! James MDW FA ... View more

Brian - You are correct. I didn't re-read my post before I posted the answers.... So, the winners are: 1 - Keith 2 - Brian and 3 - Megan If you all will email me your address, at jlmalone@cox.net I'll see what Brian can find in the SWAg closet for ya. I hope you ALL have a great St. Patrick's Day? James Malone MDW FA ... View more

Allrighty Guys and Gals - The wait is over. The answers to the questions are below: 1- Our Customer Service Agents, Skycaps, and Ramp Agents carefully checked and loaded 76 million bags! 2 - In addition to offering Positively Outrageous Service to our Customers and ensuring that our aircraft depart safely, our Ops Agents played a key role in turning 1,160,699 flights! 3 - Our skilled Pilots flew 4.1 million hours and 731 million miles, which is equivalent to 29,338 times around this planet that we call Earth! 4 - In addition to gracefully managing those seemingly unending lines at the ticket counters and gates, our Customer Service Agents sold $174 million dollars in Point-of-Sale tickets! 4 - 26 million boarding passes were issued by our Customer Service Agents. 5 - 60 million of our GREAT Passengers printed their boarding passes at home! 16 million of you, took advantage of printing your boarding passes at our kiosks! 6 - Our resourceful and patient Customer Relations/Rapid Rewards Department received and handled 599,117 calls! 7 - Our Customer Relations / Rapid Rewards department answered 238,190 Customer letters! 8 - Our efficient Cargo and Ramp Agents transported 223 million pounds of cargo! As you can see we had a VERY busy year! And the WINNER is Keith! If you will email me, I'll see what Brian can find in the SWAg closet for ya! You all have a GREAT week! James MDW FA ... View more

Carole - I love you! This was so funny I shared it with my Mother and Grandmother. They laughed too. I hope to see you Wednesday at the Culture Committee Meeting. James ... View more

And the WINNERS are: 1 - Drew 2 - Harrison 3 - Megan with an honorable mention to External Blog Boy, Kim for being the most creative! if you all will email me your addresses, I'll see what Brian can find in the SWAg closet. Thanks for playing and I'm working on the next one, it will be a little harder than this one. You gotta love google!! 😉 ... View more

Good Morning! I'm glad you all are playing the game! I'll post the answers sometime over the weekend. Keep up the good work. James ... View more

Mary - another great blog posting. Congrats on your 15 years and heres to at least 15 more!! Cheers! James MDW FA ... View more

A day after 9/11 the phrase, "Always Remember" still holds a place in my heart. In addition to the police, firefighters and other rescuers that responded that day, we need to also remember the Flight Crews that gave their lives as well. I read a very moving article over at msnbc.com yesterday. I have provided the link for you all to read it as well. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20644141/ James Malone MDW FA ... View more

Jessica - you can check out the Flight Attendant position at www.southwest.com/careers ... View more

I think next time perhaps you should bring along some Employee bloggers on your lil' adventure!! 🙂 ... View more

I never thought of the rain poncho, but a very good idea indeed. Colin - I too looked at the TSA website to see if I could find any more details for you and I couldn't. Suffice it to say, all I know is that any electronic device must be taken out of its case, and put into a seperate bin and screened individually. Nicholas - yes, F/A's and Pilots are exempt from the 3-1-1 rule. ... View more

The lids are a GREAT idea for kids...BUT they take some time to put on. So, on those very short flights you wouldn't have time to place lids on every cup. Good idea, but not very practical! James MDW FA ... View more

Stephanie - I feel your pain. Just recently the TSA came out with a new directive that ALL electronic devices must come out of their cases for inspection and not just laptops. In addition, you can buy a very inexpensive MP3 player from SanDisk or some other company for under 40.00. Check out www.bestbuy.com (no, I don't get any kickbacks! 🙂 ) As far as blankets are concerned, we have plenty on board in case we need to use them for the above mentioned reason. I personally, wish we would get rid of them all together. When people come onboard asking about blankets, I tell them movie theaters and airplanes, bring a jacket! 😉 As far as the exact count of blankets and pillows, I think we have 2 dozen or so on each aircraft. Regards, James Malone MDW FA ... View more

Michael - In order of Seniority (in my opinion): 1 - Dallas (highest) 2 - Houston 3 - Phoenix 4 - Chicago 5 - Orlando 6 - Baltimore 7 - Oakland (most junior) I would expect most of the new classes from hear on out to go to Las Vegas, which opens October 1st. I would recommend getting on as a F/A as soon as possible, that way you can start accruing seniority instead of having to switch over and then have a new probation period, seniority starts over, etc... James Malone MDW FA ... View more

Training is approximately 3.5 weeks and it is held in Dallas. Inflight Supervisors go thru the same F/A training and then they do on the job training at their base. James Malone MDW FA ... View more

I agree with Kim. Say it ain't so!! Carole, are you REALLY thinking about retiring or just tossing it around in your head? You will be missed whenever the day comes! Love - James Malone MDW FA ... View more

Thanks for all the suggestions! I definately had a great time and look forward to seeing the many other things that this great city has to offer. BTW, Cubs sweep the SOX during this weekends cross-town rivalry!! Go Cubs!! James MDW FA ... View more

Carole - Great post!! I wanna be like you when I "grow up"! Kim, Leah, et. all...I'd hug ya both!! 😉 James MDW FA ... View more

I love DC too...I've visited most of those places...but one of the most interested places I've been is the Air Space Museum at IAD (Dulles Airport). You can check out my visit http://www.blogsouthwest.com/2006/11/10/iad-dulles-washington/ here. ... View more

Francisco - I really enjoyed reading about your life on the Nimitz. A Great big thanks to YOU and all of the other US Serviceman that work so hard, each and every day to ensure the freedoms we have grown to love and enjoy on a daily basis. Thank YOU! James Malone MDW FA ... View more

Ray - Great Blog! I (as well as all of the Flight Attendants) appreciate what you, Scott and the other GREAT pilots at SWA do each and every day. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart for getting us and our Passengers to our destinations safely! You are truly appreciated! James Malone MDW FA ... View more

Christina - allrighty, folks...I have about 30 Free Hugs buttons left, so if you all want one, email me at my personal email address jlmalone@cox.net and the first folks who email me, I'll put them in the mail to ya. I'm also glad you enjoyed the post! James MDW Flight Attendant ... View more

Amy - You can make as little or as much as you want at this job. Our PLANNED lines come out of Crew Planning at between 80 trips and 130 trips a month. I believe as a beginning Flight Attendant you will make about 18 dollars a trip. You will work an average of 14 days a month, with a typical schedule being 4 on and 3 off while on probation then based on seniority you can move up to a 3 on and 4 off schedule. If you have any other questions, please let me know. Regards, James Malone MDW FA ... View more

heh...."somewhat"...I'm not going to guess, because you can't beat the Master...As Brian mentioned in today's post...We are taking some time off, and I'm working on some even MORE challenging What Am I's...just for Kim and the rest of ya'll. I hope you all have a joyous Holiday Season! Best Wishes - James Malone MDW FA ... View more

Kim - I'm not familiar with that specific book, BUT I am very familiar with Lorraine. I had the opportunity to be on our FAMily Notification Team when I worked at HDQ. Lorraine was one of the primary folks responsible for this Team. I would have to say that just knowing Lorraine personally, I would get the book and take what she says to heart. In another bit of news, I was deadheading the other day and had a little 92 yr old lady on my flight and it so happened it was her first flight. I was perusing my Airways Magazine and she became very interested in the history of SWA and was asking A LOT of questions. So, I just gave her my magazine. I'm on my way out shortly (Yes, I actually have a day off up here in Chicago) so, I'm on my way downtown to try and find another copy at my friendly neighborhood Borders. Thanks for all the kind words and I hope to have you on one of my flights soon! Regards, James Malone MDW Flight Attendant ... View more

Kim - GREAT to hear from you as a Guest Blogger! Thanks for taking the time to write. Regards, James Malone MDW FA ... View more

Jim - I would think the commute from OMA to MDW or any of our other bases for that matter would be pretty easy. I'm not sure how many commuters we have from OMA, but I don't think a lot. You can apply online to be a SWA Flight attendant. Check out: http://www.southwest.com/careers Good Luck! James Malone MDW FA ... View more

Carole - GREAT article. For those that have additional questions or want to have some discussion about being a Southwest Flight Attendant, they can also check out http:/www.flightattendants.org/swa to have some discussions, get some of their other questions answered by people who are also wanting to be SWA Flight Attendants and from those who are waiting in the "pool". Safe Flying! James Malone MDW FA P.S. It was good to see you in ABQ at the Culture Committee E-Team Visit the other day! ... View more

Jackie - as much as I hate to say it, we don't have any Part Time Flight Attendant positions. A lot of our Flight Attendants do have children and seem to find a way to make it work. With help from in-laws, working opposite days as their husbands, etc...Being a Flight Attendant is a great job with a great amount of flexibility. For more information, you can check out our website, http://www.southwest.com/careers Good luck in your future endeavors! James Malone MDW FA ... View more