Every so often, there are reports about someone discovering
a long-lost masterpiece of art in their attic.
Well that happened to me during the past week or so. I found a big box of uncut black and white
negatives, and most all of them were taken before 1974. Amazing to me is that many of these photos
have never been seen before. I will be
sharing these images with you over... read more
Blog Team
Brian Lusk
Of all our bloggers, I am probably the oldest, but I don’t feel my age. I was born in 1952, just a couple of blocks from the Santa Fe Railway’s main transcontinental line in Clovis, New Mexico to an airline father, so transportation (planes and trains) got in my blood at an early age. As a child, my fondest memories are spending days at work with my dad on the ramp in Amarillo, Texas and on the old observation deck at Dallas Love Field. After graduating from Southern Methodist University in Dallas as a journalism major, I got my first airline job with Delta in 1976. During my time at Delta, I worked at Dallas/Fort Worth (during three separate occasions), Detroit, Oakland, Atlanta (at the old terminal), Portland, Oregon, Paris Orly, and Dayton, Ohio. My 18½ years with Delta were split between ramp/operations and ticket counter/gates. I joined Southwest (thankfully!) in 1995, as a Reservations Sales Agent, but then I moved to the communications group in the Executive Office, where. I corresponded with our Customers on a wide variety of topics, but I also got to work on different projects like this blog. About five years ago I moved into the Communication & Strategic Outreach Department and worked primarily in our social media area. Then in 2011, I got my dream job as Southwest's Corporate Historian. I enjoy sharing and preserving Southwest's past with our Employees and the public at large.
Fun Facts
Languages
English and Blog
Hobbies
Aviation and Railroading
Pets
My basset, Annabelle
High School
El Segundo High School, El Segundo, Ca and WT White in Dallas
College
Southern Methodist
Favorite Sports Teams
Texas Rangers, Dallas Stars, Dallas Mavs, SMU, Cowboys
Favorite Travel Destinations
Scotland
Your Favorite Southwest Story
The current week's Flashback Fridays
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Flashback Fridays: The Start of Southwest's Long Tradition of Serving Houston Hobby
By: Brian Lusk 
May 25 2012
Every so often, there are reports about someone discovering
a long-lost masterpiece of art in their attic.
Well that happened to me during the past week or so. I found a big box of uncut black and white
negatives, and most all of them were taken before 1974. Amazing to me is that many of these photos
have never been seen before. I will be
sharing these images with you over... read more
The Day the World Changed
By: Brian Lusk
May 16 2012
Sixty years ago on May 2, 1952, the world changed forever. On that date, the jet age began as British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) made the first commercial jet flight with the de Havilland Comet 1 from London Heathrow to Johannesburg, South Africa. The new jet had a limited range so it made en route stops at Rome, Beirut, and Khartoum. Nevertheless, it averaged 525 miles... read more
Flashback Fridays: Southwest Swag and Other Promotions from the Swinging Seventies
By: Brian Lusk
May 18 2012
As mentioned in previous Flashback Fridays, Southwest utilized a lot of different promotional tie-ins in our earliest days. We were desperate to get publicity but had a very limited budget, so we were always looking for promotional partners to “get the word out.” Sometimes, as we saw last week, it involved local television stations, but more often it involved local businesses in... read more
Flashback Fridays: Do You Know the Count and the Amount?
By: Brian Lusk
May 11 2012
Before the satellite era, local television stations offered viewers a large selection of daytime programs. Some of these programs became a part of national franchises like Bozo the Clown. This show began in Chicago, but you could find a local Bozo in a lot of different markets. Other local programming included dance shows (American Bandstand began as a local Philadelphia show),... read more
Flashback Fridays: Forgotten Corners of Southwest's History
By: Brian Lusk
May 04 2012
As promised, I am sharing more photos of the recent “find” that I “unearthed.” Actually, I opened a drawer and looked in a file, but the sense of discovery is the same. I hope these photos will be reminders of some forgotten corners of our history.
First, let’s start with a Flight Attendant (actually, at the time, a Hostess) uniform of which many of you are probably unaware.... read more
737 MAX Winglets Revealed
By: Brian Lusk
May 02 2012
Back in December, Southwest Airlines announced that we had signed on to be the launch customer for Boeing’s new 737 MAX variant that will debut in 2017. The MAX will offer much improved fuel efficiency and environmental performance compared to current 737s, and it will provide great comfort and reliability to our Customers. Like any new aircraft, some features of the MAX’s design hadn... read more
Flashback Fridays: A First and Other Early Goodies
By: Brian Lusk
Apr 27 2012
The best part of my job is opening a box of photographs or negatives and finding images that haven’t seen the light of day for decades. Late last week, I found a box full of some great scenes that I can’t wait to share with you in this and future editions of Flashback Fridays.
Above we see the start of a treasured Southwest tradition and a key annual Culture event, and I wish I had... read more
Flashback Fridays: Farewell to the Old San Antonio Center Building
By: Brian Lusk
Apr 20 2012
Since we will be changing locations for our San Antonio Customer Support and Services (CS&S—formerly known as Reservations) Center, I thought this would be a good time to look at the construction photos of the current building.
By the end of the 1970s, our Dallas Reservations Center was out of space, and San Antonio, one of our original cities and the adopted home town of Cofounders... read more
Flashback Fridays: Akron, Another Ohio Aeronautical Landmark
By: Brian Lusk
Apr 13 2012
With the recent announcement that Southwest would begin service to two AirTran cities in Ohio, Akron-Canton and Dayton, on August 12, we will now be serving two of the most historically significant destinations in aviation (not to mention the birthplace of professional football in Canton). Of course, most people know that Dayton was the home of the Wright Brothers, who designed the world’s... read more
Flashback Fridays: A Look at Early Southwest Stock
By: Brian Lusk
Apr 06 2012
Normally, we rely upon the great folks on our Investor Relations Team to bring you current news about our stock. But for this week’s Flashback, I found some "really ancient" stock events that may have happened before some on that Team were even born.
The first time I really heard about Southwest stock was when I transferred back to the Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) Airport for Delta back... read more
Recent Activity Luvs
737 MAX Winglets Revealed
By: Brian Lusk
May 02 2012
Back in December, Southwest Airlines announced that we had signed on to be the launch customer for Boeing’s new 737 MAX variant that will debut in 2017. The MAX will offer much improved fuel efficiency and environmental performance compared to current 737s, and it will provide great comfort and reliability to our Customers. Like any new aircraft, some features of the MAX’s design hadn... read more
A Witness to History: Discovery Edition
By: Eric Jackson 
Apr 23 2012
When I first heard last month the Space
Shuttle Discovery was going to be making its final voyage on top of the NASA
B747, and landing at Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) on April 17th,
I quickly e-mailed my Family, Coworkers, and friends. You see I am an aviation nut, geek, etc., so
this was a big deal for me to be able to witness this historic flight, landing right here where... read more
A Tale of Two Planes: Our First Boeing 737-800s Take Flight
Apr 11 2012
[CONTEST ALERT] Feeling Hot, Hot, Hot!
By: Brooks Thomas 
Mar 09 2012
Some people have a burning desire to do drastic things; to throw caution to the wind and maybe join the circus. Others have a fiery passion for thrill-seeking. Others still are content to simply read about heroic feats. You won't catch me on a trapeze, nor will I don a flying suit. I'm not much of a reader, either. I'm somewhere in the middle. But I'm a fan of literal interpretation.... read more
An Air Force Pilot's Nod to Southwest Airlines
By: Jeremy Hunt 
Mar 07 2012
Since we were young,
my twin brother Richard and I have always been fascinated by airplanes and
aviation. We were those kids who would
get smacked in the head with a ball during an outdoor game of basketball because
we were too busy observing the planes flying over head. Fast forward many years and my twin and I
can’t seem to shake the aviation bug.Working
for Southwest Airlines is... read more
SWA Stew: Episode 37
By: Brooks Thomas
Jan 27 2012
Winning Spirit: The Humble Hero
Jan 09 2012
SWA Stew: Episode 34
By: Brooks Thomas
Jan 06 2012
Southwest Airlines and The Container Store Spread Holiday Cheer
By: Amy Swan 
Dec 22 2011
When James Came Home
By: Kathryn Dawson 
Dec 21 2011
My son,
James Bauserman, wanted to be in the military since he was four. Like all mothers,
I thought this was cute, but figured he would change his career aspirations at
least ten times by the time he graduated high school. Then, while James was still
in school, 9/11 happened. At the time, James was a member of the Navy ROTC, and
his desire to be in the military quickly became a mission. He ended... read more
