Financial Derivative Instruments Narrative (Details) (USD $)	12 Months Ended													6 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	May 06, 2008 Term Loan Agreement due 2020 - 5.223%	Apr. 29, 2009 Term Loan Agreement due 2019 - 6.315%	Apr. 29, 2009 Term Loan Agreement due 2019 - 6.315% Maximum	Feb. 28, 1997 7.375% Debentures due 2027	Dec. 31, 2006 5.75% Notes due 2016	Dec. 31, 2013 Notes Payable to Banks Term Loan Agreement due 2020 - 5.223%	Dec. 31, 2013 Notes Payable to Banks Term Loan Agreement due 2019 - 6.315%	Dec. 31, 2013 Unsecured Debt 7.375% Debentures due 2027	Dec. 31, 2012 Unsecured Debt 7.375% Debentures due 2027	Dec. 31, 2013 Unsecured Debt 5.75% Notes due 2016	Dec. 31, 2013 Fuel derivatives	Dec. 31, 2012 Fuel derivatives	Dec. 31, 2013 Interest rate derivatives Southwest Airlines	Dec. 31, 2013 Interest rate derivatives AirTran Airways	Dec. 31, 2013 Interest rate derivatives AirTran Airways Minimum	Dec. 31, 2013 Interest rate derivatives AirTran Airways Maximum	Dec. 31, 2013 2014
Derivative [Line Items]
Percent of fuel consumption hedged	51.00%																			43.00%
Gain (Loss) On Derivative Due To Loss Of Hedge Accounting														$ 15,000,000
Total collateral already posted aggregate fair value														0	0
Cash collateral deposits provided to counterparty - noncurrent																31,000,000	1,000,000
Premiums paid for fuel derivative contracts	60,000,000	36,000,000	107,000,000
Current Unrealized Net Gains in OCI	28,000,000
Cumulative ineffectiveness recognized for unsettled hedges	57,000,000
Face amount of debt				600,000,000		332,000,000	100,000,000	300,000,000	600,000,000	332,000,000		100,000,000	300,000,000
Interest rate stated in the debt agreement (in hundredths)				5.223%	6.315%		7.375%	5.75%	5.223%	6.315%	7.375%	7.375%	5.75%					4.35%	6.435%
Notional amount																	275,000,000
Proceeds from termination of interest rate derivative instrument	0	38,000,000	76,000,000
Average Floating Rate													2.54%
Maximum sum of derivatives of counterparty to be included in other (less than $20 million)	$ 20,000,000
Cash collateral provided as a percentage of derivative contract value (in hundredths)	100.00%