Southwest Airlines names IndiGo co-founder Rakesh Gangwal as Chairman

Rakesh Gangwal appointed Chairman of Southwest Airlines after acquiring $108 million worth of shares, focusing on financial performance.

Billionaire and IndiGo co-founder Rakesh Gangwal has been appointed as the Chairman of American carrier Southwest Airlines.

Mr. Gangwal, who joined the board of Southwest in July this year, had also acquired shares worth USD 108 million of the airline recently. His appointment as the board chair comes a little over a week after Southwest settled issues with Elliott Investment Management, one of the airline's largest shareholders, that had sought sweeping changes at the carrier.

On Monday, Southwest announced the appointment of Mr. Gangwal as the independent Chair of the Board of Directors and also named new Board Committee Chairs.

"We are embarking on the next era of change at Southwest as we build upon its many successes and storied past. Our critical priority as a newly constituted board is to come together to work closely with Bob Jordan and the rest of the management team to return the carrier to superior financial performance," Mr. Gangwal said in a statement.

Jordan is the President, Chief Executive Officer and Vice Chairman of the board.

Recently, Mr. Gangwal purchased shares of Southwest for $108 million.

According to seven recent filings made by Southwest to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Gangwal has purchased 3.6 million shares of the airline through multiple transactions, with prices ranging between USD 29 and USD 30 apiece.