Southwest Airlines
Airline Code: EI
About Southwest Airlines:
Southwest Airlines was originally incorporated to serve three cities in Texas as
Air Southwest on March 15, 1967, by Rollin King and Herb Kelleher. According to
frequently-cited story, King described the concept to Kelleher over dinner by drawing
on a paper napkin a triangle symbolizing the routes.(Dallas, Houston, San Antonio)
Some of the incumbent airlines of the time (Braniff, Trans-Texas, and Continental
Airlines) initiated legal action, and thus began a three-year legal battle to keep
Air Southwest on the ground. Air Southwest eventually prevailed in the Texas Supreme
Court, which ultimately upheld Air Southwest's right to fly in Texas. The decision
became final on December 7, 1970, when the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review
the case without comment. That date is considered by many to be the de facto beginning
of deregulation in the airline industry.
The story of Southwest's legal fight was turned into a children's book, Gumwrappers
and Goggles by Winifred Barnum in 1983. In the story, TJ Love, a small jet, is taken
to court by two larger jets to keep him from their hangar, and then to try and stop
him from flying at all. Taken to court, TJ Love's right to fly is upheld after an
impassioned plea from The Lawyer. While no company names are mentioned in the book,
TJ Love's colors are those of Southwest Airlines, and the two other jets are colored
in Braniff and Continental's colors. The Lawyer is designed to resemble Herb Kelleher.
The book was adapted into a stage musical, Show Your Spirit, sponsored by Southwest
Airlines, and played only in towns serviced by the airline.
Southwest Airlines Major Hubs:
McCarran International Airport
Chicago Midway International Airport
Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport
Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport
William P. Hobby Airport
Dallas Love Field
Oakland International Airport
Los Angeles International Airport
Orlando International Airport
Philadelphia International Airport
San Diego International Airport
Tampa International Airport
Nashville International Airport
Denver International Airport
Fleet Size: 540
No. of Destinations: 65
Airline was founded in: 1971