United's new CEO suffers 'heart attack'

[peekay4]

United Continental Holdings Inc (UAL.N) said Friday its recently named chief executive, Oscar Munoz, had been hospitalized, but the airline did not confirm a report in The Wall Street Journal that said he had suffered a heart attack.

Munoz's health issues are the latest setback for the No. 2 U.S. airline in terms of seat capacity, which last month named the former CSX Corp (CSX.N) executive to replace former CEO Jeff Smisek.

United's shares were down 3.4 percent in afternoon trading. They have dropped nearly 17 percent so far this year.


United CEO hospitalized, stock slumps on heart attack report | Reuters (http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/10/16/us-unitedairlines-ceo-idUSKCN0SA29S20151016)

[Airbubba]

United has been very vague publically about Munoz's medical outlook. :confused:

This just came over a link on their Twitter feed:

Brett J. Hart Named Acting CEO of United Airlines, President and CEO Oscar Munoz to Take Medical Leave

October 19, 2015

CHICAGO, Oct. 19, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- United Continental Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: UAL) today announced that its president and CEO, Oscar Munoz, is on medical leave following a heart attack he suffered on Oct. 15, 2015. At this time, it is too soon to know the course of treatment and timing of recovery. The UAL board of directors has named Brett J. Hart, currently United's executive vice president and general counsel, as acting CEO. This appointment is effective immediately.

In addition to serving as United's general counsel, Hart has been responsible for government and regulatory affairs, corporate real estate, customer experience, corporate security, community affairs, contact centers and food services. Prior to joining United in 2010, Hart served as executive vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary at Sara Lee, partner at Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal, and special assistant to the general counsel at the U.S. Department of Treasury. Hart has a bachelor of arts degree in philosophy and English from the University of Michigan and a juris doctorate degree from the University of Chicago Law School.

Hart will work closely with Henry L. Meyer III, non-executive chairman of the board, and United's experienced executive team to run the company in Munoz's absence.

"Brett has taken on increasing responsibility beyond general counsel over the last few years in the operations and customer facing areas of the company. I am confident in his ability to continue to implement the company's strategy and Oscar's mission of bringing United's people together around the shared purpose of becoming the best airline for our customers and employees," said Meyer.

"Oscar's agenda is focused on customer service, teamwork and innovation and I, along with the executive team, will continue to move quickly to implement it," said Hart. "We believe strongly that we can continue to make steady progress on increasing shareholder value by working together to deliver a great product to our customers."

The board of directors remains actively engaged in preparing for all potential outcomes regarding the company's leadership structure.


https://twitter.com/united

[GrumpyOldFart]

Prior to joining United in 2010, Hart served as executive vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary at Sara Lee, partner at Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal, and special assistant to the general counsel at the U.S. Department of Treasury. Hart has a bachelor of arts degree in philosophy and English from the University of Michigan and a juris doctorate degree from the University of Chicago Law School.



Just the man you need to run a major international airline.

[Heathrow Harry]

TBH people with a long history in airlines also have a long history of losing money

Mr O'Leary is an Accountant by trade and he runs a very sucessful airline

Freddy Laker had years of experience and went bust

Stelios knew nothing about airlines but kicked off EasyJet

these days it's about marketing, pricing, financing, "brand" and financial control - just like any other business - the technical stuff is much more routine than 40 - 50 years ago

[SeenItAll]

The general view is that Hart was chosen because he was one of the few senior execs who was not Smisek's man. Smisek being the CEO who was forced out just a month or so ago under a cloud.

Further, it is suggested that Hart was also selected because either: (a) the Board expects Munoz to return quickly; or (b) if Munoz needs to be replaced, Hart being the interim CEO would not dissuade strong outside candidates from considering the job (i.e., they wouldn't consider the decision rigged to favor an insider).

[Lonewolf_50]

Could it be that Mr Munoz took a look at the financials when the comptroller showed him the "real books" and the ticker went right on the blink ... yes, humor, as it appears that Mr Munoz is under care but not in a life threatening situation.

@SeenItAll: I think your estimate is the most likely.

[sb_sfo]

Lonewolf, I thought the same thing, but having just done a couple trips on UA last weekend, I think he may have had a look at the customer service and had a shock.

[peekay4]

United Provides Update on Health Status and Anticipated Return of CEO Oscar Munoz
United Airlines today announced that Oscar Munoz, the company's president and CEO, underwent a heart transplant operation early today and is in recovery. A transplant was considered the preferred treatment and was not the result of a setback in his recovery. The United team wishes Oscar well during his recovery, and expects him to return to United at the end of the first quarter or the beginning of the second quarter.

The company will provide additional information in the next 24 hours.