Exhibit 99.1

     CONTACT:  Investor Relations        Public Relations
               (214) 792-4415            (214) 792-4847


                   SOUTHWEST AIRLINES REPORTS SEPTEMBER TRAFFIC

     DALLAS, TEXAS - October 3, 2001 -- Southwest Airlines Co. announced today
that the Company flew 2.6 billion revenue passenger miles (RPMs)in September
2001, a 21.6 percent decrease from the 3.3 billion RPMs flown in September 2000.
Available seat miles (ASMs) decreased 3.6 percent to 4.8 billion from the
September 2000 level of 5.0 billion.  The load factor for the month was 53.4
percent, compared to 65.7 percent for the same period last year.
     Southwest's September 2001 traffic results were severely impacted by the
September 11 terrorist attacks on the United States. The Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA) immediately suspended all commercial airline flights.  On
September 14, 2001, the Company resumed flight operations and was operating its
normal schedule by September 18, 2001.  Prior to September 11, Southwest
operated approximately 2,800 daily flights, which is the same number the Company
operates today.  Since September 18, 2001, the Company has maintained its
excellent reliability record, with over 93 percent of its flights operating
ontime for the period September 18 through September 30.  The Company also
experienced minimal cancellations of less than one percent during that same
period.
     Southwest's load factor averaged 66.8 percent for the period from September
1 to September 10 and 45.4 percent for the period from September 14 through
September 30.  For the weeks ended September 23 and September 30, the weekly
load factors averaged 38.5 percent and 52.4 percent, respectively.  Bookings for
the week ended September 23 were approximately 60 percent below normal targets;
however, bookings for the week ended September 30 improved and were only 10-15
percent below normal targets.  Southwest's traffic continues to show signs of
improvement based on recent daily bookings; therefore, the Company believes load
factors will improve further this week ending October 7, 2001.  The Company
cannot accurately predict whether load factors will continue to improve or
return to normal levels in fourth quarter 2001.
     Southwest is currently in discussions with The Boeing Company regarding
aircraft delivery dates.  The Boeing 737-700 aircraft scheduled for delivery
from September 11 through December 31, 2001 have not been placed in the
Southwest flight schedule.  As a result, minor schedule adjustments have been
made to allow Southwest to begin service to Norfolk on October 7, 2001 and to
add other scheduled service previously announced.
     As of September 10, 2001, Southwest had over $1 billion of cash on hand.
On September 12, 2001, the Company accessed an additional $475 million in cash
from an existing bank line of credit.  Pursuant to the Air Transportation Safety
and System Stabilization Act, Southwest received its first installment of $144
million to compensate for direct, as well as incremental losses from the
terrorist attack, resulting in cash on hand of approximately $1.5 billion on
September 30, 2001. If losses continue, Southwest expects to receive additional
federal compensation of a similar amount during fourth quarter 2001.  Southwest
is taking every step possible to preserve its cash position, including today's
decision to change its commission policy to pay a five percent commission on all
Southwest tickets issued by travel agents beginning October 15, 2001.
     For the third quarter 2001, Southwest flew 11.3 billion RPMs, compared to
the 11.0 billion RPMs recorded for the same period of 2000, an increase of 2.7
percent.  Available seat miles increased 6.4 percent to 16.3 billion from the
third quarter 2000 level of 15.3 billion.  The third quarter 2001 load factor
was 69.1 percent, compared to 71.6 percent for the same period last year.
     For the first nine months of 2001, Southwest flew 33.7 billion RPMs,
compared to the 31.4 billion RPMs recorded for the same period in 2000, an
increase of 7.4 percent.  Available seat miles increased 9.9 percent to 48.6
billion from the 2000 level of 44.2 billion.  The year-to-date load factor
was 69.4 percent, compared to 71.0 percent for the same period last year.
     Southwest Airlines Co. will conduct a conference call to discuss its
September traffic today at 11:30 a.m. Eastern Time.  A live broadcast of the
conference call will be available via the Southwest Airlines Internet site at
http://www.southwest.com.
     This news release contains forward-looking statements as defined in the
Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.  All forward-looking
statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to
differ materially from the plans, intentions, and expectations reflected in or
suggested by the forward-looking statements.  Some of the factors that could
significantly impact the forward-looking statements made in this news release
include, but are not limited to: additional incidents that could cause the
public to question the safety and/or efficiency of air travel, operational
disruptions as a result of bad weather, industry consolidation, air traffic
control-related difficulties, the impact of labor issues, actions of the federal
and local governments, enhanced security regulations, changes in the
government's policy regarding relief to the airline industry, the stability of
the U.S. economy, inflation, the economic environment of the airline industry,
and the economic environment in general.  The Company undertakes no obligation
to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect events or
circumstances that may arise after the date of this press release.  Additional
information regarding these and other factors may be contained in the Company's
SEC filings, including without limitation, the Company's Annual Report on Form
10-K for the year ended 2000.


                                          SOUTHWEST AIRLINES CO.
                             PRELIMINARY COMPARATIVE TRAFFIC STATISTICS


                                                SEPTEMBER

                                 2001            2000              CHANGE

Revenue passengers carried         3,678,469       5,159,866         (28.7)%

Revenue passenger miles (000)      2,590,610       3,303,283         (21.6)%

Available seat miles (000)         4,848,968       5,029,077          (3.6)%

Load factor                           53.4 %          65.7 %     (12.3) pts.

Average length of haul                   704             640          10.0 %

Trips flown                           69,327          75,089          (7.7)%


                                               THIRD QUARTER

                                 2001            2000              CHANGE

Revenue passengers carried        16,207,719      16,500,662          (1.8)%

Revenue passenger miles (000)     11,260,082      10,968,076           2.7 %

Available seat miles (000)        16,290,821      15,310,348           6.4 %

Load factor                           69.1 %          71.6 %      (2.5) pts.

Average length of haul                   695             665           4.5 %

Trips flown                          235,083         229,710           2.3 %


                                                YEAR-TO-DATE

                                 2001            2000             CHANGE

Revenue passengers carried        49,450,492      47,391,379           4.3 %

Revenue passenger miles (000)     33,710,859      31,376,044           7.4 %

Available seat miles (000)        48,587,630      44,209,075           9.9 %

Load factor                           69.4 %          71.0 %      (1.6) pts.

Average length of haul                   682             662           3.0 %

Trips flown                          705,273         671,968           5.0 %