Southwest Airlines Appoints New Chief of Operations

Southwest Airlines has appointed Mike Van de Ven – formerly executive vice president of the company’s aircraft operations – as chief of operations, reporting to CEO Gary Kelly, effective September 1, 2006.

As executive vice president and chief of operations, Mr Van de Ven, 44, will oversee all operating departments at Southwest, including ground operations; in-flight and provisioning; flight operations; maintenance and engineering; flight dispatch; and safety, FAA airport security, and environmental services.

In addition to executive vice president of aircraft operations, Mr Van de Ven has held several other leadership roles at Southwest, including senior vice president of planning and vice president of financial planning and analysis.

Prior to joining Southwest in 1993 as the director of internal audit, he was a senior audit manager at Ernst & Young in Dallas.