Business overview of Southwest Airlines Company

Business overview of Southwest Airlines Company Southwest Airlines Company is an American low cost airline. Although the airline industry is no longer experiencing the rapid growth it exhibited during the 1990’s; commercial air travel in the U.S. remains the preferred method of transportation for a majority of Americans due to cost-effectiveness and timesaving characteristics. Southwest is the largest airline in the world by number of passengers carried per year (as of 2009). Southwest maintains the third largest passenger fleet among all of the world’s commercial airlines. As of May 3, 2009, Southwest operates approximately 3,510 flights daily. Southwest has its headquarters on the grounds of Love Field in Dallas, Texas. Southwest Airlines has carried more customers than any other U.S. airline since August 2006 for combined domestic and international passengers according to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Southwest Airlines is one of the world’s most profit able airlines, posting a profit for the 37th consecutive year in January 2010. Southwest’s successful business model involves flying multiple short, quick trips into the secondary (more efficient and less costly) airports of major markets, and using only one aircraft type, the Boeing 737. Key Issues Southwest’s most visible problem, as with all airlines, is the drop in demand for air travel the past 18 months. While fallout from the terror attacks gets part of the blame, Kelly (Southwest CEO) says more of it goes to general economic weakness and specifically the collapse of the late ’90s technology and telecom bubble. Environmental changes are also having effects on the Industry. Budget conscious business travelers used to love Southwest, not only for its prices, but because it was so easy to buy a ticket at the last moment, move from curb to gate in minutes and be on their way. New security procedures have taken away this added convenience and have even lengthe ned the lines. Southwest operates on a first come, first serve basis and the random gate screenings, which tends to target last-minute, one-way flight passengers (a description of most of Southwest’s passengers) places fliers in the position to have to fly in the much dreaded middle seat. Analysis Models The analysis of Southwest will cover an external analysis, an internal analysis, and a SWOT analysis. External models utilized will be The Five Forces Model of Competition, Driving Forces, and Industry Key Success Factors. Internal models utilized will be a Financial Analysis, and a Competitive Strength Assessment or SWOT Analysis. The Five-Forces Model of Competition Rivalry among firms (High) The extent to which rivalry exists will influence the overall profitability of the industry. Market concentration remains a significant factor affecting rivalry. In 1989, no single airline solely dominated the industry, but the eight largest carriers retained a total market share of 92 high traffic cities with high demand. In order to gain profits, airlines must beat out the competition by offering as much or more flights with time flexibility to a variety of destinations. Other factors contributing to rivalry include high fixed costs, excess capacity, low differentiation, price wars, and readily available prices via the Internet. Due to the nature of the industry, high fixed costs are expected. Contributions to fixed costs in the airline industry include the costs of planes, fuel, pilots, flight attendants, and additional staff for baggage and customer service. The need to meet government regulations and hire experienced employees can cost an airline company millions of dollars. Currently there has been excess capacity on many routes; as a result, airlines have been participating in price wars in order to attract customers at all costs. Minimal differentiation among airlines and switching costs for passengers also magnifies rivalry.

Is the current law on murder still acceptable Assignment

Is the current law on murder still acceptable - Assignment Example It is more than any rule that is practiced or any law but it’s a complete process of legal frame work. England inherited the law of Wales, therefore when talking about the English Legal System we refer to Wales’s as well. The English Legal system is based on the common law where the judges can carry on the law themselves and the decisions from the previous cases and be made as a part of law. (Gillespie, 2007) The legal system of England and Wales is based on the common law legal system used I Republic of England and in most common wealth countries. United Kingdom is the member of the European Union, England and Wales are constituent countries of the UK. The essence of common law is that it is the judges sitting in courts applying the Law of England. 1.1 CRIMINAL LIABILITY OF A DEFENDENT ACCUSED OF MURDER As explained by Catherine Elliot and Frances Quin in the first chapter (Elliot & Quin, 2012) there are various elements necessary to prove the criminal liability of a m urder. A criminal offence is only possible when both â€Å"Actus reus† and â€Å"Mens rea† are conducted at a time. ... As stated in the English law that a person is innocent until proven guilty. ACTUS REAUS + MENS REA = CRIMINAL OFFENCE (the above diagram shows the elements of criminal offence) In the case of Woolmington v DPP (1935) the defendant had taken a gun to threat his wife (the victim of the case), that he would commit suicide if she didn’t return to him, accidently the gun went off and he was convicted of murder. Hence, it is concluded from this case that although he did it by accident but the murderer had done a criminal offence, with a guilty mind. (Roe D, 2005) 1.2 ACTUS REUS To begin with the study of any case, firstly it is necessary to prove the criminal offence. As talked about it earlier a criminal offence is a compound of both intention and action to commit the crime. Actus reus is the first element of a criminal offence. Briefly and in simple words it means intent, the intention to commit offence. The term is a Latin word meaning ‘the guilty act’. The literal m eaning explains that it is important that a physical action or movement takes place. In the case of R  v Cunningham  (1982), the victim was attacked by the defendant wrongly assuming that victim has sexual relation with his fiance. The defendant repeatedly hit the victim in his head, causing fracture and severe injuries resulting in death in a week. Although the defendant claimed that law of murder should be held to those who intent to do kill but unfortunately the decision was given against the defendant. 1.2.1 IMPORTANCE The concept of Actus reus has been derived from English common law. The principal of this concept is the application of both the elements of criminal offence to call it a criminal act. Any act that is carried on with the intention to harm anyone becomes a criminal act. In the

The Risks of Unprotected Sex among Australian Teenagers Essay

The Risks of Unprotected Sex among Australian Teenagers - Essay Example These contacts will be used as the source for statistics relating to incidence of HIV/AIDS, other STIs, and unplanned pregnancy among young people. Palliative Care Worker Add Details. A palliative care worker will be interviewed for more information about living and dying with HIV/AIDS. Anonymous An anonymous teenage source will be interviewed to get their opinion on subjects relevant to the articles, such as unprotected sex and thoughts on the consequences. AVERT This site is being used as the source of all factual information about the physical effects of HIV/AIDS and other STIs. AVERT This section of the AVERT web site contains real life stories from teenagers who have HIV/AIDS. Some have contracted the virus through having unprotected sex. Secondary Sources Health Insite - Contraception The Health Insite web pages are a collection of many different sources of information. It is included here to show the source of the various other page links. All direct links from this site have been reviewed by Health Insite's editorial team to ensure the quality of information is high. Health Insite - Safe Sex A collection of articles relating to safe sex in Australia. Teen Health Topics - Are you Ready for Sex This site provides advice for teenagers on safe sex and deciding if they are ready to have sex. This will be used to help readers decide these questions for themselves. Family Planning Association Fact Sheets These are a collection of pamphlets containing a... With unwanted pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) a very real risk of unprotected sex, my intent with this project is to provide the full facts to young people. I believe that many young people ignore contraception simply because they are unaware of the issues, or because they have not been presented with the issues in a way that makes them real. Teenagers especially always think "it won't happen to me". My intent is to show them that it does happen to people like you. I intend to interview and collect information from people and sources that clearly show the devastating effect unprotected sex can have on teenagers, from unwanted pregnancy to HIV/AIDS. The Health Insite web pages are a collection of many different sources of information. It is included here to show the source of the various other page links. All direct links from this site have been reviewed by Health Insite's editorial team to ensure the quality of information is high. This study shows a high correlation between sexual knowledge and sexual confidence.