bsorbed most of the cost of the legal obstacles, Southwest's bank account had been drained from the original $543,000.00 to a mere $142.00. They had no employees, no planes, no managers, and virtually no money. In January 1971, they hired M. Lamar Muse as president of Southwest Airlines. Through his efforts, Southwest was able to develop a management team and raise money. (Most of Southwest's management team had been rejected or forced into early retirement by other airlines!) A much needed stroke-of-luck allowed Southwest to purchase three brand-new Boeing 737 airplanes.
             When Southwest was finally about to take off, Barriff and Texas International Airlines threw a last minute roadblock-a restraining order stopping Southwest from entering into service. Kelleher immediately contacted the Texas Supreme Court, who reversed the restraining order, and Southwest Airlines was born.
             They operated for nearly two years without recognizing any profits. Only one of the three legs of service seemed to be doing OK. Muse decided to try to fill every seat on the less successful flights by lowering the fares to $13.00. The Texas based giants, Barriff and Texas International, matched the price and the Texas air-war began. Through the use of innovative marketing techniques, and the "Ten Minute Turnaround" (an idea of fully unloading and reloading an airplane within ten minutes) allowed Southwest to build a loyal customer base that led to their first year of profits in 1973. Since then, they have never
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