southwest airlines

Ticketing was another area where Southwest was able to realize cost savings. Southwest was the first of the major carriers to offer electronic ticketing (e-tickets). Electronic ticketing costs $1 per ticket compared to estimated $8 for paper tickets. Much of that difference was in labor costs. Besides labor costs, E-tickets also helped Southwest economize on commissions to travel agents. Passenger traffic commissions accounted for only 5 percent of Southwest’s operating expenses compared to 8 percent for Delta and United Airlines. By 1998, other major airlines had introduced electronic ticketing. Southwest, however, with over 60 percent of its passengers flying on e-tickets, still issued a far greater proportion of tickets electronically than other major airlines such as Delta who had reached 24 percent by mid 1998.

Ticketing was another area where Southwest was able to realize cost savings. Southwest was the first of the major carriers to offer electronic ticketing (e-tickets). E...