Southwest's Success is no Tall Texas Tale
Texas is a big state. To do business here you've got to travel around the "Golden Triangle" of Dallas, San Antonio, and Houston, and to other cities as well. For decades prior to the 1970s, business travelers drove their company cars down many a mile of Texas asphalt (and killed a lot of armadillos along the way.) Sure, flying from city to city could save time, but talk about a budget buster! Back in that era, only oilmen, bankers, and Stanley Marcus could afford flying from city to city.
In 1966, someone saw the problem and decided to do something about it. Rollin King of San Antonio, the operator of a small commuter air service had a vision (assisted by his banker John Parker who complained about expensive airfare between Dallas, San Antonio, and Houston.) As a result of that epiphany, King paid a visit to a lawyer friend by the name of Herb Kelleher. At that meeting, King drew a sketch of a triangle on a cocktail napkin with each of the three cities at the corners and used the picture to describe the opportunity for creating an inexpensive commuter airline between the major Texas cities. To abbreviate the meeting somewhat, it went like this:
"Herb, let's start an airline."
"Rollin, you're crazy. Let's do it."
Thus began the nuttiest airline in American history. Initially patterning the idea for this fledgling company on the successful Pacific Southwest Airline (PSA) in California, Kelleher filed papers to incorporate Air Southwest Co. (later to become Southwest Airlines) in 1967.
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However, Southwest did have an advantage. Since it didn't fly across state borders, it didn't have to follow a federal mandate for ticket prices, allowing it to charge less than other airlines.
Southwest Airlines flight attendants wearing
signature hot pants circa 1970.
(Courtesy Southwest Air Lines.)
Nevertheless, its initial flights carried a few measly passengers. Many of the flights cost more than they brought in. With a decision that would soon become characteristic of the Southwest business style, it quickly adjusted the model. They moved their Houston flights from the Intercontinental Airport to Hobby Airport, which was closer to town and more convenient for passengers.
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Herb Kelleher wrestles for the right to use the phrase "Plane Smart." (Courtesy Southwest Airlines.)
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Texas Tidbit: In 2009, Southwest served 63.2 million cans of soda, juices, and water; 14.3 million alcoholic beverages; 14 million bags of pretzels; 90 million bags of peanuts; 17.7 million Select-A-Snacks; and 33.5 million other snacks.
The story continues in the book Texas Ingenuity... For complete information on this and other Texas stories...
