Southwest Airlines Case AnalysisHistoryMore than 37 years ago, Rollin King and Herb Kelleher got together and decided to start a different kind of airline. They started with a simple idea: 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 with your airline. And you know what? They were right. What started as a small Texas airline grew into one of the largest airlines in America. Today, Southwest Airlines carries more than 104 million passengers a year to 64 major cities across the country, and does so more than 3,400 times a day. With more than 500 planes, Southwest Airlines has one of the youngest fleets in the nation, with an average age of about nine years. Included in the fleet are three flying orcas, the “Shamu” aircraft; “Lone Star One,” painted like the Texas flag, celebrating the 20th anniversary of Southwest Airlines in a style and manner second to none; “Arizona One”, symbolizing the importance of the state of Arizona to Southwest Airlines; “California One,” a high-flying tribute to the state of California; “Silver One”, our 25th anniversary aircraft; “Triple Crown One,” dedicated to Southwest Airlines employees for the wonderful achievement of five consecutive annual Triple Crown awards; “Nevada One,” a high-flying tribute to the state of Nevada; “New Mexico One,” also known as Zia, painted in the bright yellow of the New Mexico flag; "Maryland One", decorated with an artistic representation of the Maryland flag; and the latest addition, “Slam Dunk One,” symbolizing Southwest's special partnership with the National Basketball Association. Since 1987, when the Department of Transportation began tracking customer satisfaction statistics, Southwest has consistently led the entire airline industry with the lowest ratio of complaints per passenger boarded. Many airlines have attempted to copy Southwest's business model, and Southwest's culture is admired and emulated by companies and organizations from all walks of life. Ever the innovator, Southwest pioneered Senior Fares, a same-day air cargo delivery service, and Ticketless Travel. Southwest led the way with the first airline web page: southwest.com, DING, the first direct link to customers' desktop computers that provides real-time updates on the hottest deals, and the first airline corporate blog , Nuts About Southwest. Our Share the Spirit community programs make Southwest the home airline of every city we serve.