Southwest Airlines Names New Member to Its Board of Directors

William H. Cunningham, the former chancellor of The University of Texas System, has been named to the Southwest Airlines Board of Directors. He replaces retiring board member Walter Mischer, Sr.

Cunningham, announced during today's regular meeting of the board, began his teaching career at The University of Texas at Austin as a professor of marketing in 1971. He also served as dean of the College of Business Administration and the Graduate School of Business and was president of UT Austin from 1985 until 1992.

"Bill Cunningham's leadership in the academic world will serve Southwest well and bring a different perspective to an already highly-respected corporate board of directors," said Herb Kelleher, Southwest's Chairman of the Board, president, and CEO.

He served as chancellor of the University of Texas System from 1992 until June of this year and currently holds the James L. Bayless Chair for Free Enterprise. He has served on numerous civic boards and commissions, including the Economic Advisory Committee of the U.S. Department of Commerce from 1983-1985; the College Football Association Board of Directors in 1988-1989; and the Greater Austin Crime Commission Board of Directors from 1992 to present.

"It is an honor to be among the esteemed members of the Southwest Board of Directors," Cunningham said. "I look forward to working on the board of the airline that has given so many people the opportunity to travel and amass experiences they might otherwise have been denied."

Among his current corporate board posts are Jefferson-Pilot Corporation, John Hancock Funds, Hire.com, Introgen Therapeutics, and IBT Technologies.

Cunningham, who earned his undergraduate, master's, and Ph.D. degrees at Michigan State University, is married with one son and resides in Austin.

Editor's Notes:

• Southwest Airlines' corporate logo, photos of Southwest aircraft, and photos of CEO Herbert D. Kelleher are available free to media via NewsCom by calling 888-776-6555 or at www.newscom.com.

• This release, as well as past news releases on Southwest, are available online at www.southwest.com. News media also can access an online press room via southwest.com--just go to About SWA and Media Relations to sign up for a user name and password.