Southwest Airlines flew in a newly-painted plane at Philadelphia International Airport on Wednesday to honor America’s 250th, writes Alexandra Skores for CNN, as reported at 6abc.
It was the first scheduled flight for “Independence One,” as it flew from Dallas to Philadelphia. Philadelphia is the birthplace of the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution.
The colorful plane is, of course, red, white, and a deep blue.
The Boeing 737 was unveiled this past Monday at Baltimore/Washington Thurgood Marshall International Airport. displaying a “1776” across the front cabin windows and “Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness” toward the back.
“It’s a symbol of what it means to give America the freedom to fly,” said Bob Jordan, the airline’s CEO, to a crowd of attendees. “As Southwest celebrates our 55th year, and (as) our nation celebrates 250, we wanted to mark this moment in a way that reflects who we are, where we’ve been and where we are headed.”
The unveiling saw members of the Pennsylvania Department of “Transportation, airline officials, and Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy in attendance.
The nation’s birthday will also celebrated by American Airlines, United Airlines, and Alaska Airlines, with their own specially-painted planes.
Read more about the unveiling of “Independence One” at 6abc.
