Brett J. Hart was appointed as interim chief executive officer by the board of directors of United Airlines effective immediately while Oscar Munoz is on medical leave in order to recover from a heart attack which he suffered on Thursday, October 15, 2015.
The acting chief executive officer — who is 46 years old and married with three sons — was responsible for managing the legal and environmental affairs, corporate security, customer experience, contact centers, food services, corporate real estate worldwide, government affairs, community affairs, and international, regulatory and policy matters as an executive vice president and general counsel at United Airlines before taking on his new temporary role.
Hart will work closely with Henry L. Meyer III — who is the non-executive chairman of the board — and the executive team to run United Airlines while Munoz recovers. The board of directors will remain actively engaged in preparing for all potential outcomes regarding the leadership structure of United Airlines.
It is unknown at this time when Oscar Munoz will recover and return from medical leave back to his position as chief executive officer of United Airlines.
Past Experience of Brett J. Hart
Prior to joining United Airlines in 2010, Hart was executive vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary at Sara Lee Corporation; a partner at Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal in Chicago; and a special assistant to the general counsel at the Department of Treasury of the United States in Washington, D.C.
Three Chief Executive Officers in Two Months
Hart is the third person within two months to take on the responsibilities of chief executive officer of United Airlines. Oscar Munoz replaced Jeff Smisek on Tuesday, September 8, 2015 as chief executive officer after Smisek was supposedly involuntarily relieved from his responsibilities at United Continental Holdings Incorporated.
The stock price of United Continental Holdings Incorporated closed on Monday, October 19, 2015 at $56.75 — up $0.78 per share, or 1.39 percent on stock ticker symbol UAL. United Airlines is expected to report quarterly earnings this coming Thursday, October 22, 2015.
Sources: United Airlines and the LinkedIn profile of Oscar Munoz.
