Cape native leaves top position at Southwest Airlines

A Cape Girardeau native, Mike Van de Ven, is among top management of Southwest Airlines — the world's largest low-cost carrier — now under federal government scrutiny because of an estimated 15,700 company flights canceled since wintry weather began to interrupt U.S. air travel one week ago.

Mike Van de Ven

According to reports, thousands of Southwest travelers have been stranded across the U.S., with many passengers enduring long lines and missing luggage.

Van de Ven, a 1980 Cape Girardeau Central High School graduate, stepped down as Southwest's chief operating officer (COO) at the end of September and is due to relinquish his role as company president at the end of this month.

He is expected to continue as "executive advisor" for Dallas-based Southwest in January.

More than 2,300 Southwest flights were already canceled for Thursday, Dec. 29, following the scuttling of 2,507 flights Wednesday, Dec. 28 — by far the most among U.S. air carriers, according to airline tracking website FlightAware.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, in comments to CNN on Tuesday, Dec. 27, said he has spoken directly to Southwest CEO Bob Jordan, who will formally succeed Van De Ven as company president next week.

"[Southwest's] system really has completely melted down. I made clear our department will be holding them accountable for their responsibilities to customers, both to get them through this situation and to make sure this can't happen again," Buttigieg told the cable network.

Denver International Airport had the most Southwest cancellations Wednesday with Chicago Midway and Dallas's Love Field seeing nearly half of its flights eliminated.

Leadership change

Southwest, in a Sept. 26 news release hailed Van De Ven for his long service to the carrier.

"I want to thank Mike for nearly three decades of leadership and unwavering commitment for the cause that is Southwest Airlines. We would not be where we are today without his countless contributions," CEO Jordan said.

"The entire Southwest family, past and present, owes Mike a tremendous debt of gratitude for his steady leadership, resolve and fortitude all these many years. I am grateful he will continue to contribute to our ongoing success in his new role," Southwest's executive chairman Gary Kelly said.

Pilot input

Mike Santoro, vice president of Southwest Airlines Pilots Association, told CNN the problems facing the carrier are the worst he's seen in his tenure at the airline — describing the winter storm that gripped much of the nation as the catalyst for recent troubles.

"What went wrong is that our IT infrastructure for scheduling software is vastly outdated," Santoro said. "It can't handle the number of pilots, flight attendants that we have in the system, with our complex route network."

Apology

"We're doing everything we can to return to a normal operation, and please also hear that I am truly sorry," Jordan said.

With large numbers of airplanes and flight crews "out of position" in dozens of cities, the airline decided to "significantly reduce our flying to catch up," he added.

Southwest, founded in 1967, has a business model distinct from its competitors, using a rolling hub and point-to-point network for its Boeing 737 jet fleet.