Former American Airlines CEO Gerard Arpey made a comment at a Boston, Mass breakfast event recently in which he expressed that Southwest Airlines will face enormous challenges going forward and specifically from network carriers.

Frankly, I think it’s a bit early for Mr. Arpey to be opining on any airline other than American Airlines and certainly not when he left a company in bankruptcy after a long tenure.  It’s just bad form.

It also points to something that I think is constantly underestimated at Southwest Airlines.  Southwest is more than just a company focused on the next financial quarter’s results.  Its people really are its biggest asset and the esprit de corps that exists there is bigger than what the financial picture presents. 

Southwest does have higher costs in comparison to many these days.  It also continues to succeed where others don’t.  Focusing in on their costs alone is a mistake when it comes to that airline and Arpey just made the mistake.

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