Southwest Airlines Community

How COOL! Isn't it great how Southwest (with the help of Boeing) is making the effort to 'mainstream' some excellent military technology that our armed forces pilots have used for years? This additional bit of equipment certainly makes it more convenient and very probably even safer. I'm very glad that, just like the blended winglets, SWA is forward-thinking enough to take advantage of the opportunity to constantly improve their operations, even when it means incorporating military hardware. Now, I'm just waiting to see my first 737 with Sidewinder missiles mounted under the wings!! Kim 🙂 ... View more

As I mentioned in my original post above, and has been reiterated by some of my fellow bloggers, while the things on display ARE really cool, they don't begin to approach the level of coolness displayed by everyone of Southwest's terrific employees. (even Brian, our BlogMaster, isn't such a bad guy once you get to know him!) For many years, I have been a student of people's behavior in the workplace along with the dynamics of corporate relationships. It is my firm belief that you can learn a lot about a company by observing its employees, and this opinion is rarely as dramatically proven as it is by spending time at D/FW Airport and then spending time at Love Field. At "the big airport", where there is one dominant airline (which shall remain nameless so I don't appear to be pointing fingers AAt AAny pAArticulAAr competitor of Southwest...), I have repeatedly watched as "their" employees pass each other in the terminal in complete silence. Rarely is a nod or wave seen, and the facial expressions certainly reveal a lack of enthusiasm at working for that company. Then, step over to Love Field, where I regularly see SWA's people smiling, chatting with each other, hugging fellow employees and shouting greetings to workers that they know. This friendly familiarity does not acknowledge any sort of 'class society', since I see pilots high-fiving baggage handlers, flight attendants hugging gate agents, various coverall-wearing nobby-knee protected folks hanging out with ticket counter people and out of uniform employees being recognized and welcomed. Southwest employees do not 'see' different levels or importance on the organizational chart, what they see are their FRIENDS who share their love of Southwest and its passengers. Speaking of which, that friendship isn't restricted to just the folks who get a paycheck from SWA. In the last week, on two separate trips out of Love, I was recognized by SWA employees who didn't know my name but knew I was a 'regular" and who spoke to me. Pictures, framed mementoes and displays of hot pants are great, but it is DEFINITELY the people who make Southwest the greatest airline in the world! Kim ... View more

Having been to the SWA headquarters building several times, I can add a hearty "amen" to Brian's comments. It literally is a living museum to the people and ideas that have made Southwest such a great company. Having grown up in Dallas, I can still remember seeing a large ad in our newspaper for a start-up airline that wanted to hire women who looked like Raquel Welch, and I certainly recall figuring out right then that this new company was NOT going to be like any other airline I was familiar with! Going places through the halls of the SWA HQ takes an incredible amount of time, not because it is a huge building (it IS pretty big), but because the trip is taken in two and three step increments as you read and enjoy the things on the walls! Seeing all of those mementoes was just a delight, and yes, they do have a framed copy of that Raquel Welch ad! Its like taking a step back in time and having your memory jogged by snippets of SW's history and the places where it intersected with your own past. The first picture shown above does not do those plane models justice, because its hard to get a sense of the size of those things. Without some scale to relate to, you can't quite tell that they are HUGE! (Brian, did you hire Spiderman to crawl across the ceiling to take that picture??!!) While the management and atmosphere of Southwest has never been about "things", and is definitely centered on "people" , having all of these really neat things on display is a great visual reminder of all of the terrific people who have implemented some fantastic ideas in the last 35 years. Thank goodness the building is NOT normally a sterile place, because that would never match the mood of the awesome employees of Southwest Airlines! Kim ... View more

Roy, Its because Herb doesn't have QUITE enough clout... :-) Actually, Roy, you may already know that Love Field in Dallas was originally an Army air base that opened in October of 1917. It was named in honor of Army 1st Lt. Moss Lee Love, who had been killed in a plane crash in San Diego in September of 1913. Hopefully, Lt. Love would have been proud to know that not only has his name been associated with a very important airport for the last 89 years, but the symbolism of his last name has inspired an attitude within an airline that was born at and is headquartered at that airport! Yes, I do LUV Love Field! Kim P. S. If you are interested in more of the fascinating history of my favorite airport, a Dallas-based aviation expert, Mr. George Cearley, published a great book in 1989 titled "A Pictorial History of Airline Service at Dallas Love Field". This book is currently out of print, but you might find a copy available on Amazon.com or eBay sometime. Here is the info on the book from Amazon's website: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0006ETA3S/sr=1-9/qid=1155449491/ref=sr_1_9/102-0428418-0630507?ie=UTF8&s=books Good luck! ... View more

Brian, On a slightly related note (isn't it fun how you can create tangents from just about any topic?), back in the mid-70s, when a group of us guys at UT-Austin used to walk from our dorm across the street to the campus cafeteria where we felt like prisoners while eating our gruel, hard cold rolls and lukewarm water (well, okay, not really, but it seemed like it at times), we'd march single-file and whistle the theme from "The Bridge on the River Kwai"! Kim ... View more

Over the years, I've been fortunate enough several times to be in the right place at the right time to be on a Southwest flight with someone "notable", but probably none of those times made as big an impression as an experience I had coming out of AUS one day bound for DAL. While waiting for my flight in the gate area (at the old Mueller Airport) after checking in, I detected a small, but noticeable 'hubbub' at the gate counter. Folks were whispering and pointing, not too discreetly, towards a tall and attractive woman checking in for a flight. She was accompanied by an even taller and very broad-shouldered man in a suit, who seemed to be hovering rather closely. As the pair moved towards where I was waiting, I began hearing her saying something along the lines of: "no, really, I'll be just fine; you go on back to the office. The plane will be here in 15 or 20 minutes and I'm in the second boarding group, so I'll be on board very soon, and 'so and so' will meet me in Dallas. No, I insist, you head on, there's no need to wait here with me. Seriously, I'll be perfectly fine, I HAVE flown all by myself before, you KNOW?" The obviously reluctant gentleman finally agreed, since it was clear that he worked for this lady, and that she was not going to take no for an answer. So, he made her promise to call him if there was any problem or delay with the flight and to call when she got to Dallas so that he knew she had arrived safely. She consented and bid him farewell. The lady then stood and waited with the rest of us (if you remember the old gate area at Mueller, it was one big square common room for about six gates, and seating was usually at a premium. She chatted with several different people who recognized her, and appeared to be genuinely interested in each of them. A helpful SWA employee approached her and offered to let her 'pre-board' so she didn't have to wait in line, but still being as resolute as before, she displayed her plastic boarding pass and pointed out that she was in the second group (31 - 60 in those days), and that she would board with "her group". I boarded ahead of her and observed the way with which she conducted herself in a manner that was respectful of her position and yet did not flaunt that position over anyone. She chose a middle seat directly in front of me, and continued throughout the flight to chat and smile and shake hands with all who approached her. My understanding is that a few years later, this lady personally called the Rapid Rewards member desk to ask them to change the address on her membership. Reciting her membership number confirmed to the surprised SWA employee that he was indeed talking to the person that she claimed to be, and so at her request, he updated former First Lady of Texas Laura Bush's address to now read "1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington, D. C."! ... View more

Very nice topic, and of particular interest to me as a trivia nerd. Growing up in Dallas (DAL) with a real passion for planes and airports, I used to pride myself on knowing a whole lot of the airport codes. That was back in those childhood and teenage years when my "hard drive" was not already occupied by more pressing facts and there was plenty of storage space for 'useless trivia'. Now at the mid-century mark, I find that my RAM has been exhausted and I badly need an additional drive for storage! As a number of folks above have alluded to, being familiar with the original names of airports and/or the military air bases that preceded them, is a big help in understanding the three-letter codes. For example, I remember when Hobby (HOU) was the only airport in Houston. Then, the new and modern Intercontinental Airport of Houston opened and appropriately took those (IAH) initials for its name. But now that northside airport is called George Bush Airport (a nod to #41), so some day, our grandchildren will look at this blog and ask how we get "IAH" out of Bush Airport! Here's a nice and informative website about this: http://www.skygod.com/asstd/abc.html Interestingly enough, those of us who are "road warriors" and frequent travelers for our jobs know that we have to have a place to sleep when we fly to a town. Holiday Inn uses a five letter code to internally identify their various hotel locations, and in quite a few cases, the first three letters are derived from the airport code for that city and then followed by two letters which generally refer to the "name" of the hotel property. For example, the Holiday Inn near the Convention Center in Lubbock is known in their system as LBBCC, drawing on the LBB for Lubbock. The Holiday Inn properties in the Dallas area begin with "DAL" and many of the Houston locations start with "HOU". This always helps me to explain why after 30+ years of staying at Holiday Inns, I'm able to tell the younger reservation agents for them why their Holiday Inn Express in San Angelo is known as SJTEX (SJT = San Angelo, TX) and their Express in Waco begins with ACT (ACT = Waco, TX). I do hope this is of as much interest to my fellow bloggers as it is to me, and that it isn't just another case of that frustrating three-letter code: TMI... ha ha :) Kim ... View more

Brian, I have to agree with the majority of the staff there; "Airplane" was/is a classic in the annals of humor in general and specifically airline and aircraft comedy. Just as Leslie Nielsen has demonstrated an uncanny ability to keep a straight face while delivering comedic lines, I likewise think that in "Airplane", Peter Graves deserved a great deal more credit than he got. Saying hilariously funny lines without cracking up yourself is a true gift. If you think that just any trained actor or comedian can do it, just watch reruns or outtakes from the old "Carol Burnett Show" and observe how real pros like Harvey Korman and Tim Conway fought to keep their composure in front of each other! Kim P. S. So, Brian, do you like gladiator movies? ha ha.... 🙂 ... View more

Brian, We're all glad that SWA has fantastic people like you. For my fellow passengers who rarely get to meet any of the "behind-the-scenes" people like Brian, let me tell you that you couldn't meet a nicer guy, and that he is indicative of ALL of the non-flight personnel at the HQ building. I've had the opportunity to visit there several times, and I have never once run into any sourpusses! As I have often observed in businesses, the climate of the place and the attitudes of the employees most usually flow down from upper management. If there was ever any doubt that Herb and Colleen and Gary aren't the really nice people that they seem to be in news bites and on TV, just look at the folks who work for them for the proof! My hats off to my bud, Brian! Your 50-year-old pal who may just someday decide to apply to SWA himself, Kim :) P. S. This is a disclaimer -- I really did write these nice things about Brian; he did not edit my comments to make himself look good! LOL ... View more

Fred, If you can't quite make the connection, trying re-booting your modem and re-configuring it to point to "The Psychic Airline HomePage"... Thanks for your reply, and believe me, the Force IS with me! :-) Kim ... View more

Cap'n Ray, As I've said over and over throughout this blog, Southwest is absolutely my favorite airline, and the LUV that I feel for you guys is unparalleled. However, as much as I enjoy being a passenger in the cabin of one of your 737s, I have to admit that it is not my absolutely favorite PLANE to fly in. The views out the side windows of your planes have been very enjoyable for me over the years, allowing me to see many parts of our country as I sit back and savor my bag of peanuts. However, as you know, the BEST views come from the front seats in your office. To borrow a SWA ad phrase from years ago, "The Company Plane" is a great way to get around, but my employer also has a 'company plane' which I am fortunate enough to fly in from time to time. My favorite seat in our Falcon 50 jet is the front jumpseat directly behind the co-pilot, where I've spent many hours with a radio headset on my ears and my camera up at my face, taking in the view from the cockpit. You guys with the striped epaulets have the BEST view around! Thanks for posting this great picture! Best wishes and a salute to the best and friendliest commercial pilots around, Kim ... View more

Okay, color me wacky, but knowing my friends at SWA as well as I do, the title for this heading, "Unforeseen Weather Delays -- There May Be Some Relief in Sight" sounded like a 'set-up' for an announcement along the lines of: "DALLAS - Today, Southwest Airlines CEO Gary Kelly announced that the low-fare airline based in Texas has hired 63 new psychic readers and plans to station one in each of the cities that they serve. Kelly boldly asserted that 'we are tired of being surprised by developing weather patterns that affect our flights and our passengers. Therefore, our new staff of prognosticators will allow us to avoid unforeseen weather delays by warning us ahead of time about conditions that in the past would have disrupted our famous on-time performance.' Travelers who were interviewed at several airports report optimism at Kelly's plans and renewed confidence in the dependability of their favorite airline. In unrelated news, cross-town rival American Airlines has fired their engineer who told them that blended winglets were just a fad to be ignored." ... View more

Okay, I believe you -- this new form of Super Glue really DOES work. NOW could you please land this plane and unstick me? ... View more

"Sure, we use these fancy jetways for our passengers, and it IS important for us pilots to stay in shape, but I wish Herb didn't make us climb out these windows at the end of our shift." "Of course, Southwest is all about saving money, but you'd think Colleen would realize how embarrassing it is when she issues each pilot their own bottle of spray cleaner and roll of paper towels." "People always say they think airplanes don't face the same hazards as cars on the highway. Hey, buzzards are OUR form of road kill." Flight attendant to co-pilot: "I think Cap'n Ray finally flipped out. All I asked was if he wanted another bag of peanuts..." Co-pilot yells out: "Yes, it WAS a rough landing, but rules are rules and you STILL have to stand in the cockpit doorway and say goodbye to our passengers, Cap'n Ray!" "Watch this, I'm gonna climb out the window and I'll really screw up the flight attendants' through-count!" "Who cares about the dumb 'fasten your seat belt' light? I'm the boss and I'll stand up whenever I darn well feel like it." Former USAF fighter jock, now SWA pilot, is heard to exclaim: "Real men don't need a jetway!" ... View more

Gordon, Not that my friend is not able to toot his own horn, but you have a very skilled curler in your midst, and I'm not referring to 12-oz. curls, either! Although he might be good at those kinds of curls as well, I'm referring to Dan Johnson, one of the Original Employees right here in Dallas in your HQ building. Dan is a very skilled competitor in the Olympic-level sport of curling: ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curling ), which is something we are not too familiar with here in Texas. But, it is a very cool sport (sorry for the pun, I couldn't help myself) and I've seen Dan play. If you ask him about it, I'll bet he'll tell you all about their team and how much fun it is! Kim ... View more

Gary, In the spirit of the recent efforts between Mayors Miller and Moncrief, let me offer a compromise solution to the open/assigned seating question. Having spent a bit of time traveling around NYC, I see the speed of loading and the efficient use of every single square foot of space to accomodate passengers that is utilized by the New York City Metropolitan Transit Authority. They have a transportation system that facilitates rapid entry and egress for its passengers, as well as providing ample opportunities for personal growth through close proximity making of new friends. So, may I suggest that SWA simply remove the seats from all of its planes (a huge weight, and therefore, cost savings), remove the overhead bins (more weight reduction, plus it eliminates the complaints about onboard luggage) and install hanging straps at twelve inch intervals in rows of four on each side where the seats used to be. This will allow you to transport considerably more people per flight, resulting in higher revenues at lower costs. If it works so well for the NYC subways, its bound to work for SWA!! Kim (with tongue firmly in cheek) 🙂 ... View more

Sunny -- What a very nice piece you've written about your tenure at SWA! As a "student" of individual, as well as corporate behavior, I can assure you from many years (I'm not quite as old as my bud Brian Lusk, but I ain't far behind! 🙂 ) of observing people and companies, you are in a very special environment. Sadly, there are not very many companies left that value their employees as highly as SWA does. My father, who was a very successful businessman, taught me a number of important principles that he learned in the School of Hard Knocks. During the Depression, his family was only able to afford to send him to one year of college. After that, he worked the rest of his life. In his case, the 'real world' was his learning place instead of college, and he learned well about how to deal with people. Owning his own business for almost fifty years after managing several other companies gave him ample opportunity to interact with a lot of employees and customers. I never knew him to treat one of his employees any differently than he would a member of his own family, and he never looked down on an hourly member of his team as being any less valuable or a lower-class person than the salaried employees or the management. In addition, he told me early on in my career that the common adage "the customer is always right" is nothing short of WRONG!! His approach was that "the customer is always the CUSTOMER", and you treat them with the respect and courtesy that they deserve. But, there are times that the customer IS wrong and you have to deal with those circumstances accordingly. In much the same way, SWA flies in the face of popular business teaching that says "make the customer number one". Herb very correctly understood that what HAS to be number one in an organization is its people. He makes that abundantly clear not only through expressions of spoken or written business philosophy, but more importantly, through day to day practice. I've seen plenty of companies that tell their employees how important they are, but their actions don't agree with their words. But, results speak very loudly, and the consistent and ongoing popularity and growth of SWA are testaments to they way their people are treated. If you treat your employees well, then you get attitudes like the ones that you and Brian have stated -- they ENJOY their jobs. What better prescription or recipe for getting your employees to treat your customers well than to make sure that your employees are happy? Guess how a grumpy employee treats their customers? Yup -- grumpily. Herb simply put into practice on a large scale the axiom that is well-known among married men. "If Momma ain't happy, ain't NO ONE happy". The inverse is also true; you make Momma (the employees) happy and then everyone (customers/fellow employees/kids/your dog, etc.) will reap the benefits! I'm glad that you and Brian recognize and appreciate what a special and unique situation you have. The fact that you do see it and value it indicates that it is working! There is an expression that "good guys finish last", but Herb has finished way ahead of the pack for years and I am convinced it is not an accident or fluke. The success of SWA, in my opinion, is DIRECTLY attributable to the way it treats its most valuable assets. While the bean counters might disagree, I am not referring to the fleet of 737s! Its you and Brian and all of the other terrific people that share their employer's LUV for them with us! Best wishes, Kim ... View more

For those who are still a bit skittish about the safety and stability of SWA's impeccably maintained fleet of 737's, let me offer you a story from the realm of 'famous airplane lore' at Boeing. In 1955, Mr. "Tex" Johnston, one of Boeing's test pilots at their headquarters in Seattle, was flying a plane then known as the 367-80, or by its short form, the 'Dash 80', in a demonstration flight for visitors to the city's hydroplane races on Lake Washington. To prove to the onlookers just how wonderful this plane was, as well as to impress them with its stability and structural strength (and with his own flying ability, no doubt), Tex put the plane into a simple barrel roll. A plane doing a barrel roll continues straight ahead in the same direction of flight it was in, but 'rolls' in a 360 degree circle as one of the wings begins to rise and just continues on over until the plane is still flying forward but is upside down. This manuever keeps going until everything is back rightside up again. The Dash 80 was the prototype for what later became the famous 707. That particular plane that was the center of much attention after Tex's flight, is now on display at the National Air & Space Museum's new Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center at Dulles Airport in Washington, D. C. Here is a video of the event: http://www.aviationexplorer.com/707_roll_video.htm Now, if the early 707 was THAT safe 51 years ago, imagine how safe today's 737s are with all of the advances in avionics (the onboard electronics that help control a plane) since then! So, even if Captain Ray decides to do a barrel roll on your flight, the worst that would happen is you would probably spill your little bag of peanuts! But, if he does, please don't go and tattle on him to Colleen. She probably wouldn't be any more keen on him doing that than Tex Johnston's bosses at Boeing were! So, sit back, relax and feel very confident that those great folks in the cockpit are in control of a very well-built airplane! Kim P. S. Cap'n Ray? If you ever decide you want to do a barrel roll, could you give me a few days' notice? I want to be onboard -- I wouldn't miss THAT for the world!! 🙂 ... View more

On a morning flight from DAL to AMA many years ago, the FAs decided to do an onboard contest to give away some small promotional prizes (inflatable planes, some playing cards, a $25.00 voucher [which at that time was about 50% of the cost of a ticket for that route!!], etc.) They called for volunteers to come up front and sing "Amarillo by Morning" by memory. I recall several not-so-successful attempts that were a bit painful to watch (and listen to...) before one gentleman got up and just NAILED it. He sang the entire song from memory and knew all of the words. If the "fasten seat belt" light hadn't been on, we would have all given him a standing ovation! Now THAT'S how to have fun on an airline and to get your passengers to LUV you! Kim ... View more

Dear Kimberly (from one Kim to another) -- Tickets by mail? YIKES!! You mean like the new version of The Pony Express? ha ha I can go you one better in terms of prehistoric practices at your "small airline". It might have been there while you were an employee, but way back in the Stone Age, I used to drive to a small ticket office that was on Mockingbird just a half a block east of the main entrance to DAL at Cedar Springs. There was a miniscule building where you could pick up tickets reserved on the phone and save going into the main terminal! Of course, I remember the really early days when I bought my tickets from a nice lady standing behind a huge cash register with buttons for each destination. Naturally, my ticket was a piece of cash register tape! Ahhhh, those were the good ole days! Oops, I guess I'm showing my age now... Best wishes, Kim ... View more

Brian, Can you surgically remove these off-topic posts and transplant them to the right place, which seems to be part of the avalanche of emotions generated by Gary's original post? It would sure help us get back on track here with Cap'n Evans! Thanks, Kim ... View more

Captain Evans -- You are quite correct, and I applaud you for being astute enough to have noticed this. Many companies in hundreds of different industries overlook their most valuable source of information, feedback and awareness of the marketplace, when they ignore their own people and pay big bucks to some outside consulting firm to tell them what many of their present employees already know. This is not a condemnation of consultants, who can provide a helpful and fresh outside perspective, but our "front end" employees usually have a better finger on the pulse of what is happening. If you really want to know what is going on in the trenches, ask the people who work in them every day! Your attitude also reflects one of SWA's best traits -- they value ALL of the people who work for them because they recognize the worthwhile contribution that they each make. Keep up the great work up front and let your fellow teammates keep up the great work in the main cabin! Best wishes, Kim ... View more

Brian, This seems like a good section of the blog to pose my question. You know I'm a fellow plane buff (nut?) and that I'm in LUV with Southwest. I'm often asked by my friends who know my obsession, err, interest in Southwest to name all of the "special" planes. In my office, I have several models and pictures of Lone Star One to celebrate my home state, and I can usually name about the first ten or so, but I get a bit fuzzy on all of them. Could you list out the 'names' and tail numbers of each of the ones with the unique livery? And, what's the chance that your webpage will be updated with pictures of all of the recent additions? I'm referring to: http://www.southwest.com/about_swa/photos.html Thanks! Kim P. S. By the way, even though my bud Brian was making a somewhat self-serving comment about the special Airways magazine edition above (I think he gets a royalty on every one sold), it IS a fantastic keepsake of the 35th anniversary and I highly recommend it to my fellow SWA fanatics! He did just a terrific job on it, and while he's being modest by saying he wrote "an" article in it, I believe that if the truth were known, he probably did about 95% of the work to put the issue together. Outstanding work, Brian! ... View more

Brian, I'm right there with ya, buddy! The chunkier, the better! To my fellow SWA fans, All joking aside, what a great way to show your LUV for Southwest and to support a great cause at the same time. Please take a moment to help those who are less fortunate (besides the folks who don't fly on SWA) and demonstrate to them that SWA not only has the greatest employees in the world, they've got some pretty terrific passengers, too! http://www.secondharvest.org/who_helps_us/southwest.html Thanks for your support! Kim ... View more

Scott -- you're approaching LAS with your nervous, first-time flying wife? Hand her the credit card and give her a kiss. If that doesn't relax her, nuthin' will.... Captain Ray -- I don't believe that turbulence is as benign as you claim. After a number of years of flying, I'm noticing that more and more your 737s are showing severe wing fatigue. An increasing number of your planes have had the tips of their wings bent straight up by all of that choppy air. You don't fool me! Kim P. S. Oops, Brian Lusk just told me that those are blended winglets, nevermind! LOL :) To all of you White-Knuckle Fliers out there -- the above post was a joke. The winglets are a terrific cost-saving addition that SWA implemented years ahead of much of their competition! Refer to the following and take comfort: http://www.boeing.com/news/releases/2003/q2/nr_030617g.html and to see them up close, check these out: http://www.southwest.com/images/swamedia/winglets_lg.jpg http://www.baltimoresun.com/media/photo/2005-09/19562739.jpg Happy flying! Kim 🙂 ... View more

Over the years, I've heard enough songs (some good and some, well, not-so-good) and jokes (mostly groaners) to fill a book. I've heard about 95% of the ones listed above at one time or another. But the one that I choose to post here involved The Grand Canyon, much like Jennifer's post above. As we approached the gorgeous and famous National Park, the pilot came on the PA system with this announcement: "For those of you on the left side of the plane, in just a moment, you'll be able to all lean over and look out your side of the plane and see the beautiful Grand Canyon." (pause) "For those of you on the right side of the plane, in just a moment, you'll be able to look to your left and see the rear ends of the other passengers." Half of us got a lovely view that day... Kim 🙂 ... View more

James, I've said it before (here and plenty of other places), and I'll say it again. You DO work for THE greatest company in the world, but in my years of observing many many businesses, what makes a company great is its employees. SWA is great because its people are great! Congratulations once more on a well-deserved 35th anniversary, and I'm eagerly looking forward to your 50th! Kim P. S. Thanks for the pictures -- they only confirm my feelings. Only SWA would have the character to hold a huge party in a warehouse! And I'm impressed that you got Linc from "The Mod Squad" to show up. How's he doing these days? 🙂 ... View more

Hey Brian, I've got a question for you and all of the other nuts down at SWA. I went online and bought some peanuts for the 35th anniversary of my favorite airline. There were multiple choices for the various quantities that you wanted to buy through the website. BUT, there was a choice that was glaring in its omission, and since SWA is famous for giving its customers a choice, I was rather surprised by this oversight. Why wasn't there an option to select "smooth" or "chunky"?? Your favorite Garland nut, Kim 🙂 ... View more

To Chuck III -- I believe the practice started as a result of the gradual thickening of the American waistline. As the popularity of fast food and high cholesterol dosages have all increased dramatically, folks in this country keep getting bigger and bigger. Peanuts were the logical and appropriate response, as they are a well-known favorite among a certain breed of animal. Just two weeks ago, I sat next to an elephant in the center seat... Kim (with tongue firmly in cheek) 🙂 ... View more

Dear Robin -- Wow! What a nice thing to say!! But now I'm blushing, plus I have to worry about my wife finding out about "us"!! LOL 🙂 Plus, now you have me wondering if I've talked to you some of the many times I've called in for reservations! Seriously, I've always been a huge fan of SWA (you should see all of the model planes and framed stuff in my office!) and an avid student of the philosophy of the way SWA treats its employees and its customers. Besides, how can you not like a company that emphasizes fun? In all my years of flying on SWA (about 33 of your 35), I've met exactly ONE employee who was rude and discourteous to me. He was probably a spy planted there from another airline from here in town... Thank you so much for your kind words, and please keep up the wonderful job that you do! Best wishes always, Kim P. S. Oklahoma, huh? I hate to break this to you, but I graduated from UT in Austin -- will you still LUV me on the second weekend of October in the Cotton Bowl at the State Fair of Texas in Dallas? ha ha ... View more