MarketingQ&A LibraryWhat are the significant findings/ key matters of Southwest Airlines
What are the significant findings/ key matters of Southwest Airlines
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Rollin King and Herb Kelleher started Southwest Airlines in 1971 with this idea: if they could take airline passengers where they want to go, on time, at the lowest possible price, and have a good time while doing it, people would love to fly their airline. The result? No other airline in the industry's history has enjoyed the customer loyalty and extended profitability for which Southwest is now famous. The company now flies more than 3,400 times each day to over 64 destinations across the United States
There's more to the story, however, than making promises and hoping to fulfill them. A large part of Southwest Airlines' success lies in its ability to plan long-term capacity to better match demand, as also improving the utilization of its fleet by turning around an aircraft at the gate faster than its competitors. Capacity at Southwest is measured in seat miles, and even a single minute reduction in aircraft turnaround time system wide means addi tional seat-miles being added to the available capacity of Southwest Airlines as soon as an aircraft calls "in range" at one of Southwest's airport locations, called a station, the local operations manager notifies the ground operations team so that they can start mobilizing all the parties involved in servicing the aircraft in preparation for its next departure. The grounds operations team consists of a baggage transfer driver who has responsibility forgetting connecting flight bags to their proper planes, a local baggage driver who moves bags to baggage claim for passenger pick-up, a lavatory truck driver who handles restroom receptacle drainage, a lead gate agent to handle baggage carts and track incoming and outgoing bag counts, and a bin agent to manage baggage and cargo inside the plane. The ground operations team knows it must turn the plane around in 25 minutes or less. The clock starts when the pilot sets the wheel brakes.
What are the Statements of the Problem of Soutwest Airlines?
Transcribed Image Text:7:09 O M
all
Inbound and outbound flights are coordinated by the supervisors be-
tween Southwest's 64 airport stations through the company's Operations
Terminal Information System (OTIS). Each local supervisor is able to keep
track of their flights and manage any delays or problems that may have crept
into the system by keeping in touch with headquarters in Dallas for system-
wide issues that may impact a local station, along with using the OTIS infor-
mation coming from stations sending flights their way.
Just what, exactly, does it take to turn around an aircraft? In-bound flight
3155 from Phoenix to Dallas' Love Field is a good example. In Phoenix, the
operations coordinators and ground operations team push back the plane as
scheduled at 9:50 A.M. The flight is scheduled to arrive at 3:35 P.M. in Dallas.
The Phoenix team enters into OTIS the information the ground operations team
will need in Dallas, such as wheelchairs, gate-checked baggage, cargo bin
locator data, and other data needed to close out the flight on their end. This
action lets the Dallas station know what to expect when the plane lands.
In Dallas, the local ground operations coordinators have been monitor-
ing all 110 inbound flights and now see Phoenix flight 3155 in the system,
scheduled for an on-time arrival. When the pilot calls "in-range" as it nears
Dallas, the ground crew prepares for action.
As the plane is guided to its "stop mark" at the gate, the lead agent waits for
the captain's signal that the engines have been turned off and brakes set. Within
just 10 seconds, the provisioning truck pulls up to open the back door for restock-
ing supplies such as drinks and snacks. The waiting fuel truck extends its hose to
the underwing connection, and in less than 2 minutes, picks up refueling instruc-
tions and starts to load fuel. As soon as the aircraft is in position, the operations
team steers the jetway into position and locks it against the aircraft. The door is
opened, the in-flight crew is greeted, and passengers start to deplane.
Outside, less than 40 seconds after engine shutdown, baggage is roll-
ing off the plane and gets placed onto the first cart. Any transfer bags get
sent to their next destination, and gate-checked bags are delivered to the top
of the jetway stairs for passenger pick-up.
While passengers make their way out of the plane, the in-flight crew helps
clean up and prepare the cabin for the next flight. If all goes well, the last pas-
senger will leave the plane after only 8 minutes. By this time, passengers waiting
to board have already lined up in their designated positions for boarding. The
gate agent confirms that the plane is ready for passenger boarding, and calls for
the first group to turn in their boarding passes and file down the jetway.
At the completion of boarding, the operations agent checks the fuel in-
voice, cargo bin loading schedule with actual bag counts in their bins from
the baggage agents, and a lavatory service record confirming that cleaning
has taken place. Final paperwork is given to the captain. The door to the air-
craft is closed, and the jetway is retracted. Thirty seconds later, the plane is
pushed back and the operations agent gives a traditional salute to the captain
to send the flight on its way. Total elapsed time: less than 25 minutes.
Transcribed Image Text:7:09 P O
PLANNING CAPACITY
CHAPTER 6
243
Managing Southwest's capacity has been somewhat simplified by strate-
gic decisions made early on in the company's life. First, the company's fleet of
aircraft is all Boeing 737's. This single decision impacts all areas of operations –
from crew training to aircraft maintenance. The single-plane configuration
also provides Southwest with crew scheduling flexibility. Since pilots and flight
crews can be deployed across the entire fleet, there are no constraints with
regard to training and certification pegged to specific aircraft types.
The way Southwest has streamlined its operations for tight turnarounds
means it must maintain a high capacity cushion to accommodate variability
in its daily operations. Anything from weather delays to unexpected mainte-
nance issues at the gate can slow down the flow of operations to a crawl.
To handle these unplanned but anticipated challenges, Southwest builds into
its schedules enough cushion to manage these delays yet not so much that
employees and planes are idle. Additionally, the company encourages dis-
Cussion to keep on top of what's working and where improvements can be
made. If a problem is noted at a downstream station, say bags were not prop-
erly loaded, this information quickly travels back up to the originating station
for correction so that it does not happen again.
Even with the tightly managed operations Southwest Airlines enjoys,
company executives know that continued improvement is necessary if the
company is to remain profitable into the future. Company executives know
when they have achieved their goals when internal and external metrics are
reached. For example, the Department of Transportation (DOT) tracks on-
time departures, customer complaints, and mishandled baggage for all air-
lines. The company sets targets for achievement on these dimensions and
lets employees know on a monthly basis how the company is doing against
those metrics and the rest of the industry. Regular communication with all
employees is delivered via meetings, posters, and newsletters. Rewards such
as prizes and profit sharing are given for successful achievement.
As for the future, Bob Jordan, Southwest's Executive Vice President for
Strategy and Planning, puts it this way: “We make money when our planes
are in the air, not on the ground. If we can save one minute off every turn
system-wide, that's like putting five additional planes in the air. If a single
plane generates annual revenue of $25 million, there's $125 million in profit
potential from those time savings."
OHEATIONS
w can capacity and utilizaz of 2e measured at an airli
uthwest Airlines?
Which factors can adversely impact turn-around times at Southwest
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