Celebrating Southwest’s unique history on its 50th birthday

Southwest Airlines, the airline that debuted with about 1,000 employees and a dozen planes alongside print ads featuring hot pants and go-go boots, celebrates its 50th birthday today. Today, Southwest employs about 60,000 and flies 750 planes. The airline might have died in its infancy if not for a regulatory loophole that allowed it to cut prices and an administrative oversight that made it possible to base operations from Dallas Love Field.