Once upon a time, in a country called the United States, there were three major airlines - Braniff, Texas International and Continental Airlines - that ganged up and tried to stop a yet to be established airline called Southwest Airlines, citing that there was no need for a new carrier in Texas. After a long and frustrating court tussle, and many failed verdicts in the lower courts, the case went all the way to the US Supreme Court. Southwest Airlines was able to win a major victory and started flying four years after it was established.
The court decision, which rewarded Southwest the victory, was bittersweet, as the new aspiring airline was left with 142 dollars in the bank and a ledger deeply in the red from overdue bills from the unnecessary court battle that tried to thwart its existence even before it began operations.
Fast forward 43 years to look at Southwest Airlines' success, from which we, Ethiopians, could learn the advantages of thinking outside the box. This is especially true as we adopt and consider the many advantages of a liberal and open sky aviation policy that could put our country on the right track as a leader in the aviation business. No doubt that this is truer even as we generate billions of dollars for the Ethiopian economy and create a much needed professional aviation force.
Consider this; in a volatile aviation business, Southwest Airlines has been the only profitable airline in the US since its establishment 43 years ago. To underline their impressive success, it is also worth noting that Southwest, which from the beginning was established on very shaky ground, did not only have to compete against the well established airlines, but it took the stage offering the unheard of concept of "low-cost" airfares. This gave air travellers a cheaper alternative and a somewhat door-to-door service, as it moved its operations closer to the needs of the customers.
Although it offered much lower fares and flew to fewer destinations, Southwest began making profits, hiring more people, purchasing more airplanes and embarking on innovative ways of serving the public with "love", as they put it. To sum-up their success over the past forty-three years, consider that they now hire almost 45,000 employees, operate 610 Boeing 737 Jets, have an additional 290 Boeing 737s on order and have purchase options on additional 227 Boeing 737 aircraft.
My purpose is not to advertise Southwest Airlines, but to use the Southwest story as an excellent example of the positive outcome and result of a liberalised aviation policy. Less than 30 years since being established, also consider the Irish Ryan Air case, now operating more than 300 Aircraft and employing more than 8,000 people.
There is also the Indonesian based low cost carrier, Lion Air, which was established in 1999, a mere 15 years ago, and now operates more than 100 airliners. An even more impressive statistics about Lion Air is the fact that they have recorded the most valuable commercial order book in history - for a mixture of 464 Boeing and Airbus aircraft, totalling 46.4 billion dollars.
As boring as the statistics sound, what I am trying to establish is the fact that such profit, employment and growth is very real and possible also in Africa, given the opportunity for an equal playing field based on sound judgment and a sound Aviation Policy. The country's interest and opportunity for its people should be of paramount concern more so than an egotistical view that any new airline is a threat to the status quo and all hands should be on deck to fend off any such eventuality.
There is no reason why Southwest Airlines' history cannot be emulated in our country. There is no basis for argument that a new upstart airline would not be able to create a profitable, professional, productive customer-centred low-fare airline, even as it creates jobs for thousands of Ethiopians and reinforces Ethiopia's position in the aviation world. We have history to back us up and an impressive aviation tradition that we could rely on, if so required.
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