Southwest Airlines Fact Sheet - November 1999

Leadership:

Herbert (Herb) D. Kelleher, Chairman of the Board, President, and Chief Executive Officer.

Headquarters:

2702 Love Field Drive
P.O. Box 36611
Dallas, Texas 75235

About the Company:

The airline began service June 18, 1971 with flights to Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio. Southwest has grown to become the fourth largest U.S. airline (in terms of domestic Customers carried). Yearend results for 1998 marked Southwest Airlines’ 26th consecutive year of profitability. Southwest was the only major carrier in 1990, 1991, and 1992 to make both net and operating profits. Southwest became a major airline in 1989 when it exceeded the billion-dollar revenue mark. Southwest is the United States' only major shorthaul, low-fare, high-frequency, point-to-point carrier.

Daily Departures:

More than 2,500 flights a day

Employees:

More than 29,005 total active Employees throughout the Southwest system.

Stock:

Common stock is traded under the symbol "LUV" on the NYSE.

1998 Consolidated Financial Statistics:

• Net income: $433.4 million
• Total passengers carried: 52.6 million
• Total RPMs: 31.4 billion
• Passenger load factor: 66.1 percent
• Total operating revenue: $4.2 billion

Cities Served by Southwest:

Southwest flies to 55 cities (56 airports) in 29 states.

Type of Service:

Southwest currently operates 308 Boeing 737 jets (as of October 31, 1999).

• The Company’s fleet has an average age of only 8.3 years.
• Cruising speed of 564 mph.
• The average aircraft trip length is 462 miles with an average duration of about one hour and 24 minutes.
• Southwest aircraft fly an average of nearly nine flights per day, or about 12 hours per day.
• Southwest was the launch customer for the Boeing 737-700 in 1997. As of October 31, we have 51 737-700's, and are committed to 101 firm orders and have 62 options. Southwest was also a launch customer for the Boeing 737-500 and -300 series aircraft.

Southwest Airlines' Top Ten Airports:

Reservations Centers:

Southwest Airlines operates nine reservations centers located in Dallas, San Antonio, Houston, Phoenix, Albuquerque, Chicago, Salt Lake City, Little Rock, and Oklahoma City.

1998 Fun Facts:

• Southwest received 141,710 resumes and hired 4,115 new Employees.
• Southwest answered 87 million reservations calls
• Southwest served 86.9 million bags of peanuts
• Southwest served 8.7 million bags of raisins
• Southwest uses about 74 million gallons of jet fuel per month
• Southwest has 821 married couples. In other words, 1,642 Southwest Employees have spouses who work for the Company.
• SWA received requests for service from 171 destinations.

Southwest Airlines Distinctions:

• Southwest’s average one-way airfare is about $79, and the average passenger trip length is 632 miles.
• Southwest has ranked number one in fewest Customer complaints for the last eight consecutive years as published in the Department of Transportation’s Air Travel Consumer Report. Southwest also ranked number one in ontime performance for the last seven consecutive years according to the report.
• Southwest earned the "Triple Crown" for its 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, and 1996 performance. This consists of fewest Customer complaints, best ontime performance, and best baggage handling of all major airlines, according to statistics published in Department of Transportation (DOT) Air Travel Consumer Reports.
• The airline began the first profit-sharing plan in the U.S. airline industry in 1974. Through this plan, Employees own about 13 percent of the Company stock.
• The airline is approximately 85 percent unionized.
• In 1999, Herb Kelleher was named CEO of the Year by Chief Executive Magazine.
• Southwest Airlines is a member of the FORTUNE 500.
• The carrier has a site on the Internet’s World Wide Web that provides access to a comprehensive route map of Southwest Airlines’ services. Southwest Customers can conveniently make their own reservations and purchase Ticketless Travel at Southwest’s site. Southwest’s Home Gate address is www.southwest.com. Southwest was recognized as having the "best airline Web home page," according to Air Transport World.
• The Ronald McDonald House program, cornerstone of the Ronald McDonald Children’s Charities, is the primary corporate charity of Southwest Airlines. Annually, the Company sponsors the Southwest Airlines LUV Classic golf tournament whose proceeds benefit the Ronald McDonald Houses and have totaled more than $3.5 million for the past 14 years.

Southwest Airlines' Recognitions:

• The National Airline Quality Rating (AQR) ranked Southwest Airlines number one for three years in a row from 1996 to 1998. The ranking included 19 separate criteria, including on-time arrivals and departures, safety, baggage handling, Customer complaints, and financial stability. The rating is conducted jointly by researchers at the University of Nebraska at Omaha Aviation Institute and the W. Frank Barton School of Business at Wichita State University.
• Southwest Airlines was once again included in FORTUNE magazine’s annual list of 100 Best Companies to Work for in America. In the magazine’s Jan. 11, 1999 issue, Southwest was ranked as the number four company to work for in America. Southwest topped the list in 1998. Business journalists Robert Levering and Milton Moskowitz compiled the list, using methodology similar to that used for their 1993 bestseller The 100 Best Companies to Work For in America, in which Southwest was named one of the "Top Ten" companies.
• FORTUNE has consistently recognized Southwest Airlines in its annual survey of corporate reputations. Among airlines, Southwest came out on top as the most admired airline for 1996, 1997, and 1998. Among all industries, FORTUNE has listed Southwest among America’s most admired corporations year after year, ranking the airline as the number seven for 1998.
• Southwest also is one of the most admired companies in the world, according to the Oct. 28, 1998 issue of FORTUNE. Southwest ranked 13th among companies across all industry groups in the magazine’s 1998 World’s Most Admired Companies list. Within the airline industry, Southwest earned third place (even though it has no international destinations).
• Money magazine ranked Southwest Airlines number one in its first rating of the major U.S. carriers. In a November 1997 survey of more than 1,000 fliers, Southwest was rated first in safety, price, ontime performance, baggage handling, and Customer Service.
• In 1999, Southwest was cited for having one of the best national reputations by a consumer survey conducted for The Wall Street Journal. Southwest was the only airline to make the list. Out of 30 nationwide companies ranked on the basis of reputation, Southwest placed 25th.
• Southwest Airlines is among the top 10 "Role Model" companies in America, according to a May 1997 survey conducted by the London Business School, the University of Southern California, and the University of North Carolina. The survey described Southwest as an "American Icon."
• Southwest Airlines has been named a charter member of the International Airline Passengers Association’s Honor Roll of Airlines among the World’s Safest Airlines. Southwest also has been recognized as one of the world’s safest airlines by Conde Nast Traveler.
• Southwest Airlines is considered one of the most effective users of information technology, according to the Nov. 16, 1998, issue of Computerworld. Southwest Airlines was included in the magazine’s Premier 100 list, which is based on survey evaluations from 1,000 information technology managers.
• FORTUNE Magazine in its Nov. 8, 1999, issue named Southwest's web site as one of the 10 best in the nation that "get it" when it comes to electronic commerce. Southwest's site is so easy to navigate it only takes 10 clicks to buy a ticket.

Updated November 9, 1999