Swa -Video Case Study

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1. How can capacity and utilization be measured at an airline such as SWA? SWA can measure capacity and utilization by the turn around time at the gate. When others take more than 30 minutes, SWA can turn the aircrafts around in less than 25 minutes. According to SWA, “planes not in the air don’t produce revenue.” The turn around time is similar to Krajewski’s wait line model for capacity planning. The model suggests times vary from one area to the next. Southwest can use the information to choose the most cost effective capacity, balancing customer service and the cost of adding capacity. (Krajewski, et al., 2010). Bob Jordan, VP of Strategy and Planning stated, that the metrics to monitor capacity and utilization would be the number of aircrafts in the fleet, the number of aircrafts in production, the percentage of flights in the air, the available seat miles, and the available passenger seat miles (open seats) on the flights. 2. Which factors can adversely impact turn-around times at SWA? There are several factors that can affect the turnaround times at SWA. First, there are obviously weather delays. Seasonal weather such as snow storms, blizzards, hurricanes, sleet, freezing rain and even fog can delay a plane from leaving or arriving at its scheduled time. Another factor stems from the customer experience and their familiarity with the policy and procedures at SWA. There is also the size and number of carry on bags. If the bag is larger than the required size, the bag has to now be checked in at the gate. If there are more than two bags, then space in the overhead compartments fill up and passengers struggle to find a place for the bag instead of getting to their seat. There could also be a learning curve with the SWA employees on the processes for boarding passengers. While the process is standardized, new hires can

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