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This information is a decade old, but my wife told me that Southwest were the only American airline to make a profit. That could have something to do with it...
by lee337 15y ago
This information is a decade old, but my wife told me that Southwest were the only American airline to make a profit. That could have something to do with it...
EDIT: This recent news article states "Of the five biggest U.S. airline companies, analysts expected only Southwest to report a first-quarter profit":
http://travel.usatoday.com/flights/story/2011/04/Southwest-manages-to-make-a-Q1-profit---/46353984/1 http://travel.usatoday.com/flights/story/2011/04/Southwest-m...
- drags 15y agoSome of Southwest's profit comes from fuel price speculation, which could backfire on them much more quickly and easily than their core business: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southwest_Airlines#Risk_management http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southwest_Airlines#Risk_managem...
- joahua 15y agoFrom what I understand fuel contract hedging is a pretty standard part of airline business. Obviously hedging has potential to go the other way but it's unlikely to erode profit unless competitors are able to significantly compete on price and steal customers...