Founders · Apr 9Herb Kelleher: Founder of Southwest Airlines
It sued with Braniff and Trans Texas to block Southwest, arguing the markets were saturated. Southwest beat all three when it had only three planes.
Tips
- Kelleher fought four and a half years of lawsuits and paid court costs himself to get Southwest airborne▶ 12:58Braniff and Texas International were later indicted for conspiring to put Southwest out of business and pleaded no contest.
- Kelleher rallied employees against United with a vivid letter titled commencement of hostilities▶ 38:59Southwest had 20 airplanes against United's initial 25 new ones, with 100 more in reserve.
