Sustainability and the Future of Southwest Airlines“The mission of Southwest Airlines is dedication to the highest quality of customer service delivered with a sense of warmth, friendliness, individual pride and corporate spirit ( Southwest Airlines, 2009).”Since its conception in 1971 by founders Rollin King and Herb Kelleher, Southwest Airlines has maintained its mission. The simplistic belief of “If you get your passengers to their destination when they want, on time, at the lowest possible fares, and make sure they have fun doing it, people will fly your airline (Southwest Airlines, 2009)” has helped Southwest to become a major competitor in the airline industry. It is now the fourth largest airliner in the United States and ranks 267th on the Fortune 500 list of America's largest companies. From an operating base of three planes flying to three cities, Southwest Airlines now has flights to 64 cities in 32 states and a fleet of more than 500 planes (Fortune 500, 2009). Some numbers are presented that will provide a brief synopsis of the company's activity: net profit: $645 million; total passengers transported: 101.9 million; Total RPM: 72.3 billion; average passenger load factor: 72.3% and total operating revenue: $9.9 billion While the airline industry was permanently altered by the events of September 11, Southwest remained profitable. They were the first airline to use a frequent flyer. Southwest also pioneered the use of senior discounts, same-day air cargo delivery services, ticketless travel, and many other innovative programs (Fortune 500, 2009). Southwest's organizational structure reflects an inverted pyramid. Management... at the center of the paper... king of the largest American companies. Retrieved January 11, 2009, from CNNMoney.com: http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune500/2008Gittell, J.H. (2002, December 19). The Southwest Airlines way. Retrieved January 11, 2009, from McGraw-Hill: Professional: http://www.mhprofessional.com/product.php?isbn=0071428976Jones, D. (2008, March). New test for Southwest Airlines. Retrieved January 12, 2009, from Procurement Travel: http://www.procurement.travel/news.php? cid=Southwest-Airlines-discount-negotiations.Mar-08.28Pae, P. (2008, March 30). Southwest reaps the benefits of the fuel hedging strategy. Retrieved January 14, 2009, from Los Angeles Times Business: http://articles.latimes.com/2008/may/30/business/fi-southwest30Southwest Airlines. (2009, January 17). Southwest Airlines Co. Retrieved January 11, 2009, from Southwest.com: http://southwest.com/