Captain Ed Evans started his day before sunrise, preparing Southwest plane 8921 for a long journey. The year-old Boeing 737 MAX8 would fly nearly 4,000 miles, traveling from Baltimore to Denver, Long Beach, Reno, Las Vegas, Sacramento, and back to Las Vegas.

The holiday season is a busy time for airlines, and Southwest Airlines is expecting a record number of passengers this year. At each stop, the team works quickly to prepare the plane for its next departure. Flight attendants swap out twice, and the pilots change in Reno. In Denver, husband-and-wife team Andrew Witmer and Jordan Baumgarner work to quickly restock snacks and drinks.

Across six flights, the plane carries 698 passengers and 578 checked bags. Among the passengers is Katie Jones, who is taking her 3-year-old son, Clark, to Disneyland for his birthday.

Running an airline is no small task, according to Southwest CEO Bob Jordan. Inside Southwest's network operation center in Dallas, Sarah Heugel monitors the cross-country journey, watching for turbulence, bad weather, or airport backups that could cause delays.

As night falls, plane 8921 completes its last stop of the day, remaining on schedule the entire journey. Its rest would be brief—just seven hours—time for any maintenance checks and restocking before a new day of travel.

For passengers, it's a chance to connect with loved ones during the holidays. For the airline, it's a delicate dance of coordination and teamwork to keep everything moving.