Reality show is a win-win situation for A&E; and Southwest

LINTHICUM, Md. —  As with several other reality shows (think “Trading Spaces” or “What Not to Wear”), “Airline” is a copycat of a British reality program of the same name, which has shadowed the no-frills carrier EasyJet for eight seasons. When A&E; Network decided to produce an American version, Southwest Airlines seemed like the natural fit -- it was the most recognizable low-cost airline at the time, and it had a reputation for being fun and having character.

But persuading the airline to participate was another story.

The show’s premise is fraught with peril for Southwest, which has no control over content, save for the right to review the film for security purposes. What if one of the employees loses it and is rude to a customer? What if someone just plain screws up?

Add that the production is a big undertaking for the airline -- which has to provide liaisons to get the crew through security at each airport location and has to monitor which employees have agreed or not agreed to participate -- and it’s not shocking that Linda Rutherford, a Southwest public relations executive, admits that she dumped A&E;’s proposal in the trash as soon as she looked at it.

A few hours later, though, she took it out of the garbage and put it on the corner of her desk, where it remained, untouched, until A&E; called to follow up. After much consultation with EasyJet, Southwest President Colleen Barrett gave the go-ahead.

“As we looked into it, all of this was really pointing to the fact that this was an intelligent risk to take and exciting opportunity to put our brand out there where we might not normally be,” Rutherford says.

So far, it’s mostly been win-win for the airline. Sure, Rutherford admits, there have been a few “teachable moments” -- instances when Southwest might have handled situations better -- in the footage. But employee applications submitted on the airline’s website spike in the hours after the program airs. There has been a small, incremental increase in use of the website to book fares at that time as well. And, for the most part, employees view Southwest’s decision to participate as a signal that management is confident they do their jobs well.