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Non-Tech : Southwest Airlines (LUV)) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Kok Chen who wrote (250)	8/11/1999 1:47:00 PM
From: Raptech	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 299

Wow, just two days ago I wrote about concerns for Herbs longevity. Let's hope he overcomes this, and recovers his health. Wednesday August 11, 12:00 pm Eastern Time Southwest Airlines CEO Has Cancer By DAVID KOENIG AP Business Writer DALLAS (AP) -- Herb Kelleher, the flamboyant, chain-smoking leader of low-cost carrier Southwest Airlines, has prostate cancer, the company disclosed today. Kelleher, 68, the co-founder and longtime chief executive and chairman, will begin eight weeks of radiation treatment today at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. Kelleher joked his way through a half-hour conference call with reporters, downplaying his ''mundane, routine'' case of prostate cancer and saying the illness would not interfere with his ability to run the airline. Some stockholders have complained about Kelleher's smoking and questioned whether the company has an adequate succession plan for the man who helped found the airline in 1971. Kelleher dismissed the criticism. ''I really don't intend to make any changes in my lifestyle, and certainly there will be no changes in the business of Southwest Airlines as a consequence,'' he said, adding that the only impact will be a curtailed travel schedule while he commutes to Houston each weekday. He also dismissed the succession worries. ''There is no need to update any succession plan because our board discusses that issue on a regular basis,'' said Kelleher, whose contract runs through 2000. The cancer was discovered at an early stage during a routine annual prostate examination, and is in a mild stage of development, said Dr. Andrew C. von Eschenbach, director of the prostate cancer program at M.D. Anderson. He said Kelleher is expected ''to lead a fully active and productive life just as if he had never had prostate cancer.'' Kelleher co-founded Southwest Airlines in 1971. He was named chairman in 1978 and assumed titles of president and CEO in 1981. His flamboyant leadership and high-flying spirit have been considered the keys to Southwest's success. The company's disclosure comes just months after a shareholder raised concerns about Kelleher's longevity, complaining about his penchant for cigarettes, Wild Turkey liquor and frequently flying aboard an airline that routinely offers fat- and salt-laden peanuts. A proposal put forward by the shareholder would have made Kelleher, who is also president, choose between running either the board or day-to-day operations. The proposal never made it for a vote at the company's annual meeting in May. Kelleher has always had a tongue-in-cheek style that has created a casual corporate culture at an airline known for high customer satisfaction. Fortune magazine named it the country's most admired airline, and this year, the best place to work in the United States. Dallas-based Southwest is the nation's fourth-largest carrier in terms of customer boardings. It operates more than 2,450 flights a day and has more than 28,000 employees. On the news, its stock dipped 12 1/2 cents to $16.37 1/2 a share in midday trading on the New York Stock Exchange.