Southwest Airlines: A Great Place to Work.The Success of Southwest AirlinesThe BeginningIn the mid-1960s, Rollin King, owner of a small commuter air service from San Antonio, Texas, realized the inconvenience and expense of traveling between San Antonio, Dallas and Houston. Thanks to the urging of his banker and his own vision, Rollin King decided to start an intrastate airline. King first presented his plan to Herb Kelleher, a San Antonio lawyer who had done previous legal work for King. King's proposal was to focus on the three cities, the Golden Triangle of San Antonio, Dallas, and Houston, which were all experiencing rapid growth and development. King's research determined that the three cities were far enough apart from each other that air travel could become the preferred method of transportation over buses and automobiles. Kelleher agreed to learn more about King's proposal and the two decided to discuss King's plan in more detail over cocktails. With nothing more than a pen and a cocktail napkin, King began sketching out his idea on that cocktail napkin and eventually Kelleher was on board. In 1967, with just $560,000, Air Southwest Co. was formed. In 1971, after several years of legal battles with competing airlines, Southwest finally took off with three destinations and three planes. The business plan from the beginning was to provide low rates, on-time hours and excellent customer service. Southwest's first service began between Dallas and Houston. Shortly after that service began, Southwest management noticed that all the major airlines were starting to pull out of Houston Hobby Airport. Realizing Hobby's proximity to downtown Houston attracted Sou...... middle of paper ......it would be an honor to be both a customer and an employee of this fine organization. References Freiberg, K. & Freiberg, J. (1996). Nuts! Southwest Airlines' crazy recipe for personal and business success. History and profile of the Southwest Airlines company. Retrieved 11/2011 from http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/Southwest-Airlines-Co-company-History.htmlPBS, Chasing the Sun. Retrieved 11/2011 from http://www. pbs.org/kcet/chasingthesun/innovators/hkelleher.htmlAvstop.com, History of Southwest Airlines. Retrieved 11/2011 from http://avstop.com/history/historyofairlines/southwest.htmlSouthwest Airlines, fact sheet. Retrieved 11/2011 from http://www.southwest.com/html/about-southwest/history/fact-sheet.htmlSouthwest Airlines, Our Culture. Retrieved 11/2011 from http://www.southwest.com/html/about-southwest/careers/culture.html