Southwest Airlines And AirTran Airways Increase Flight Schedule For Traveling College Sports Fans

DALLAS, Dec. 4, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Southwest Airlines (NYSE: LUV) is making the right call for college sports fans planning to travel to Miami for the Bowl Game on Jan. 7, 2013. Today the airline introduced additional flights to accommodate Customers traveling to South Florida, including service not normally offered between Birmingham (BHM) and Ft. Lauderdale (FLL), specifically for the big game.  The new service implemented for the Bowl Game include the following and are available for purchase only at southwest.com and swabiz.com!

Southwest Airlines Additional Service on Jan. 5:

• Two daily nonstops between Chicago- Midway and Ft. Lauderdale
• Two daily nonstops between Birmingham and Ft. Lauderdale

Southwest Airlines Additional Service on Jan. 8:

• Two daily nonstops between Ft. Lauderdale and Chicago- Midway
• Two daily nonstops between Ft. Lauderdale and Birmingham

AirTran Airways Additional Service on Jan. 5:

• One daily nonstop between Chicago- Midway and Atlanta

AirTran Airways Additional Service on Jan. 8:

• Three daily nonstops between Ft. Lauderdale and Atlanta

Southwest Airlines is showing its support by dedicating these extra flights to the fans.  Flight #120 and Flight #505 from Chicago- Midway to Ft. Lauderdale celebrate Blue and Gold's 12-0 season and star players who both wear #5; and Flight #42 from Birmingham to Ft. Lauderdale is for the Crimson fans cheering on their star running back!

ABOUT SOUTHWEST AIRLINES CO.In its 42 ^nd year of service, Dallas-based Southwest Airlines (NYSE: LUV) continues to differentiate itself from other low-fare carriers by providing reliability and exemplary Customer Service delivered by 46,000 Employees to more than 100 million Customers every year.  Including wholly owned subsidiary AirTran Airways, the Company operates the largest fleet of Boeing aircraft in the world to serve 97 destinations in 41 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and six near-international countries. Visit southwest.com/citizenship to read the Southwest Airlines One Report™ and see how Southwest is doing its part to be a good citizen while underscoring a commitment to the triple bottom line of Performance, People, and Planet.

Southwest AirlinesFrom its first flights on June 18, 1971, Southwest Airlines launched an era of unprecedented affordability in air travel quantified by the U.S. Department of Transportation as "The Southwest Effect," a lowering of fares wherever the carrier serves. Southwest now flies the most passengers nonstop of any U.S. airline and stands alone among major air carriers in offering all Customers the first two pieces of checked luggage (weight and size limitations apply) and all ticket changes without additional fees (fare difference may apply).  On every flight, Southwest consistently offers leather seating and the comfort of full-size cabins across the world's largest fleet of Boeing 737 aircraft, many of which are being equipped with satellite-based WiFi connectivity and a new, eco-friendly cabin interior featuring sustainable materials. Having achieved a 39 ^th consecutive year of profitability, the People of Southwest operate more than 3,200 flights a day and serve communities around 77 airports in Southwest's network of domestic destinations.  Southwest Airlines' frequent flights and low fares are available only at southwest.com .

AirTran AirwaysAirTran Airways, a wholly owned subsidiary of Southwest Airlines Co., has been ranked top airline in the Airline Quality Rating study three times in the past five years. AirTran offers coast-to-coast and near-international service with close to 600 flights a day to 55 destinations.  The carrier's low-cost, high-quality product includes assigned seating and Business Class. As Southwest continues to integrate AirTran's People, places, and planes into Southwest Airlines, Customers of both carriers may book flights at airtran.com and exchange earned loyalty points between both AirTran's A+ Rewards® and Southwest's Rapid Rewards® for reward travel on either airline.*

www.southwest.com

SOURCE Southwest Airlines

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