Southwest Airlines Lowers Estimated Tax Bill.(Originated from Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Texas)

Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News, August, 1997 by Reed, Dan

Aug. 15--Southwest Airlines said Thursday that the recent implementation of a revised federal air service tax, which includes a $1 per passenger head tax, will cost it about $10 million less in 1998 than previously forecast.

Nevertheless, Dallas-based Southwest said the tax changes will increase its tax burden by $30 million to $35 million next year. Southwest Chairman Herb Kelleher had predicted on July 14 that the tax would cost his airline an extra $45 million in 1998.

Southwest, which provides mostly short-haul, point-to-point service, fought the tax change while most other major carriers, which operate hub-and-spoke systems and emphasize medium- and long-haul flights, supported it.

The head tax will gradually rise to $3 per...

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