SOUTHWEST AIRLINES NAMES PROVEN LEADER AILEEN FURLONG AS VICE PRESIDENT SALES

Longtime airline executive brings multi-faceted leadership experience to the airline's Revenue Organization

DALLAS, Dec. 11, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Southwest Airlines (NYSE: LUV) has selected Aileen Furlong as its new Vice President Sales to lead the airline's Southwest Business function. She will officially join Southwest Airlines^® on Jan. 6, 2025. Southwest Business serves corporate Customers – both corporate travel managers and travel management companies – with an approach that offers direct support and self-service options to companies of all sizes.

"Aileen's appointment is a wonderful opportunity for Southwest Business and our entire Revenue Organization," said Andrew Watterson, Chief Operating Officer at Southwest Airlines. "She has the well-rounded capabilities and experiences we were looking for to take our organization to the next level, and we're thrilled to have her join the Southwest Family next month."

Furlong comes to Southwest^® after a 23-year career at United Airlines where she was a trusted transformational leader with a proven record of building and delivering innovative programs and generating revenue. She has a diverse background that includes leadership and management roles in sales, loyalty programs, marketing, and customer experience. Most recently, she served as Managing Director, Global Corporate Sales, where she negotiated contracts with top global accounts and led a team of global account management sales professionals.

Furlong's appointment comes as Southwest continues building its Revenue Organization to unite the revenue production disciplines – Revenue Management, Pricing, and Southwest Business – into a new business unit under a single Leader.

Active in the business travel community, Furlong has twice been named as one of the "Top 50 Women in Travel" by the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) and Premier Traveler counted her as one of the Most Compelling Women in the Travel Industry. She is also a past member of the GBTA Women in Travel Advisory Board.

Furlong holds a Bachelor of Arts in government from Georgetown University and an MBA in marketing and finance from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern.

ABOUT SOUTHWEST AIRLINES CO.  
Southwest Airlines Co. operates one of the world's most admired and awarded airlines, offering its one-of-a-kind value and Hospitality at 117 airports across 11 countries. Southwest took flight in 1971 to democratize the sky through friendly, reliable, and low-cost air travel and now carries more air travelers flying nonstop within the United States than any other airline¹. Based in Dallas and famous for an Employee-first corporate Culture, Southwest maintains an unprecedented record of no involuntary furloughs or layoffs in its history. By empowering its more than 73,000² People to deliver unparalleled Hospitality, the maverick airline cherishes a passionate loyalty among more than 137 million Customers carried in 2023. That formula for success brought industry-leading prosperity and 47 consecutive years³ of profitability for Southwest Shareholders (NYSE: LUV). Southwest leverages a unique legacy and mission to serve communities around the world including harnessing the power of its People and Purpose to put communities at the Heart of its success. Learn more by visiting Southwest.com/citizenship. As the airline with Heart, Southwest has set a goal to work toward achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050⁴. Southwest has also set near-term targets and a three-pillar strategy to achieve its environmental goals. Learn more by visiting Southwest.com/planet.

1. Based on U.S. Dept. of Transportation quarterly Airline Origin & Destination Survey since Q1 2021
2. Fulltime-equivalent active Employees
3. 1973-2019 annual profitability
4. Southwest's net zero by 2050 goal includes Scope 1, Scope 2, and Scope 3 Category 3 emissions only and excludes any emissions associated with non-fuel products and services, such as inflight service items. 

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SOURCE Southwest Airlines Co.