Southwest Airlines CEO Kelly stepping down in 2022, will be replaced by company veteran
- CEO and chairman Gary Kelly is stepping down as the airline's chief executive next year.
- Airline veteran Robert Jordan, its executive vice president corporate services will take over on Feb. 1, 2022.
- Kelly has been CEO since 2004.
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Southwest Airlines CEO and chairman Gary Kelly said Wednesday that he is stepping down as the company's chief executive and will be replaced by company veteran Robert Jordan next year.
Kelly will hold the role of executive chairman until "at least" 2026, the company said.
Kelly, 66, has been CEO since 2004, helming the Dallas-based airline during the financial crisis, a merger, the grounding of the Boeing 737 Max, and more recently, the Covid-19 pandemic.
Jordan, 60, is Southwest's executive vice president corporate services and jointed the low-cost carrier since 1988. He takes over as CEO on Feb. 1, 2022.
"Succession planning is one of the most important jobs of a CEO, and it's something I've spent a lot of time thinking about and working on with our Board of Directors for several years," Kelly said in a note to employees.
"I'm not going anywhere, though," he wrote. "My focus will be business and fleet strategies, governmental and airport affairs, and leading the Board of Directors."
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