I compared Continental Airlines' flight scedules between Houston Bush and cities that Southwest Airlines does not serve nonstop from Houston between July 1 and October 1. During that period, Continental plans to drop one flight to Amarillo, Columbus, Detroit, Ft. Myers, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Lubbock, Norfolk/Virginia Beach, Omaha, Pittsburgh, Reno/Tahoe, San Jose, Tucson, and Washington Dulles. It also plans to terminate two flights to Louisville, Raleigh/Durham, San Francisco, as well as three flights to Seattle/Tacoma. Why don't you explore these routes? It would be ridiculous to add a flight to all these destinations, but some of them may be profitable. Fuel prices are higher than anyone could have imagined, but Southwest Airlines has a legacy of turning an obstacle into an advantage. As so many airlines shrink dramatically, Southwest has the opportunity to expand at their turfs.

It is my sincerest hope that someone from Southwest Arlines is reading this blog, as it is important to my wife and I that Southwest read this very important blog. We have made some attempts to write directly but to no avail. On July 16th of 2007 my wife Venera was flying into Los Angeles (LAX) from Bishkek, Kyrgystan which is a former Russian republic and a 20 hour flight via Moscow. During my wife's arrival into Moscow for her connecting flight to LAX she suffered several seizures due to a massive brain tumor that had developed while on vacation. Upon arrival into LAX after 16 hours of flight she had several more in the terminal but insisted on going to a hospital in our community of Walnut Creek ,Ca.. During her seizures at the terminal I did all I could to calm her down so that perhaps we could alleviate the attacks. At announcement time to board flight 777 to Oakland, my wife had one more siezure but this time it went away prior to boarding the flight. During the flight my wife had several more seizures and the flight attendants although concerned, offered comfort and understanding as several passengers were annoyed and rude. Upon arrival into Oakland my wife lost consciousness and stopped breathing. Due to the prompt and immediate actions of the flight crew and the captain who I wish I could hug right now, emergency medical crews arrived and transported my wife to John Muir Hospital in Walnut Creek. In spite of the fact that my wife was not expected to live because of the huge tumor, the fact that Southwest made every conceivable effort to arrive minutes earlier and arrange for medical assistance, those extra minutes and those efforts will never, ever be forgotten by me or my wife. My wife underwent eight hours of brain surgery against all odds and after a month in the hospital, she is alive and well today almost 12 months after that horrible 20 hours in flight. But most notable, Southwest personnel from flight 777 and "Bridget" who offered to personally bring my baggage home deserve our thanks because they have no idea that although I was alone in this ordeal, they saw to it that I was not alone in getting her immediate medical help upon arrival into Oakland. Should thay read this blog please accept my thanks and that of my wife, and to the captain....thankyou for your kind words and incredible support that evening of July 17th. It is our hope to someday thankyou all in person. Thankyou for helping save my wife, the greatest gift
in my life. Thankyou and god bless.
Sincerely,
Chris and Venera Montanez