Southwest
Airlines Unveils High-Flying Tribute To New Mexico
"New Mexico One" is Airline's Latest Specialty Aircraft
ALBUQUERQUESept.
18, 2000Southwest Airlines today dedicated a multi-million
dollar tribute to the people of New Mexico by unveiling its tenth
specialty aircraft named "New Mexico One." The 737-700
carries a depiction of the state's official flag, anchored by the
ancient symbol of the Zia Pueblo Indians. The host of today's event
- Ron Ricks, Southwest's vice president of governmental affairs
- welcomed New Mexico's First Lady and the Governor of the Zia Pueblo
who both spoke during the ceremony.
"Today
is a testament to the genuine affection Southwest Airlines has for
its New Mexico Employees and Customers," Ricks said. "They
have contributed so much over the past 20 years and are directly
responsible for our incredible growth here."
Since
initiating service to New Mexico at the Albuquerque International
Sunport in 1980, Southwest Airlines has grown from three to 60 daily
departures supported by more than 800 Employees. Southwest recently
announced it will grow even more with an additional flight to San
Diego and service to a new destination - Baltimore/Washington (BWI)
- starting on Dec. 10, 2000.
"I
know many New Mexicans have wanted this aircraft and have been very
patient while we looked for just the right opportunity," said
Terry Eisenbart, Southwest's marketing manager for New Mexico. "New
Mexico One is so beautiful. I hope people here feel it is worth
the wait."
Ricks
and Eisenbart hosted approximately 800 community leaders, including
New Mexico's First Lady Dee Johnson and Governor Vincent Pino of
the Zia Pueblo. Since New Mexico One carries the ancient symbol
of its people, officials at Southwest Airlines and the designers
of the paint scheme consulted with the Zias to make sure the symbol
was used correctly.
"The
Zia symbol means a great deal to us and we appreciate Southwest's
efforts to make us a part of this process," said Peter Pino,
the Zia tribal administrator. Pino was instrumental in securing
the participation of his governor for today's event as well as children
from the Zia Pueblo who performed a traditional Crow Dance as part
of the aircraft dedication.
Mrs.
Johnson proclaimed Sept. 18, 2000, "Southwest Airlines Day
in the State of New Mexico" as she presented an official proclamation
from Governor Gary Johnson.
"We
are honored that Governor Pino and Mrs. Johnson could be with us
today and are proud to carry New Mexico's message to the 56 cities
across the country served by Southwest Airlines," Ricks said.
New
Mexico One joins nine other 737s in Southwest's fleet that carry
a unique paint scheme: Nevada One, Lone Star One (Texas), Arizona
One, California One, three Shamu aircraft (Sea World), Silver One
(celebrating Southwest's 25th Anniversary), and Triple Crown One
(recognizing Southwest's top rankings for ontime performance, baggage
handling, and Customer satisfaction).
Southwest
Airlines inaugurated service to Albuquerque in April 1980 with three
daily departures. It now boasts 60 daily departures and carried
approximately 1.5 million Customers from Albuquerque in 1999.
Southwest
Airlines (NYSE:LUV), the fourth largest domestic carrier in terms
of Customers boarded, currently serves 56 cities (57 airports) in
29 states. Service to Buffalo, New York starts on Oct. 8, 2000.
Based in Dallas, Southwest currently operates more than 2,600 flights
a day with a fleet of 333 Boeing 737s with an average age of 8.4
years--one of the youngest pure jet fleets in the domestic airline
industry.
This release, as well as past news releases on Southwest, are available
online at www.southwest.com. News media also can access an online
press room via southwest.com--just go to About SWA and Media Relations
to sign up for a user name and password.
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