Southwest Airlines December traffic increased 15%

Southwest Airlines Co. reported that the Company flew 5.0 billion revenue passenger miles (RPMs) in December 2005, compared to the 4.3 billion RPMs flown in December 2004. Available seat miles (ASMs) increased 7.0 percent to 7.4 billion from the December 2004 level of 6.9 billion. The load factor for the month was 67.6 percent, compared to 62.9 percent for the same period last year.