Southwest Airlines reached an agreement with activist investors Elliott Investment Management, which had been seeking changes to the carrier’s board of directors. The airline named Pierre Breber, David Cush, Sarah Feinberg, Dave Grissen, Gregg Saretsky and Patricia Watson as independent directors of the board as part of the agreement.

Breber is former CFO of Chevron; Cush has served as CEO of Virgin America; Feinberg is a former administrator at the Federal Railroad Administration and was interim CEO of the New York City Transit Authority; Grissen is a former group president of Marriott International; Saretsky is former CEO of WestJet; and Watson has served as chief information and technology officer at NCR Atleos since October 2023.

Gary Kelly, Southwest’s executive chairman, will accelerate his retirement, which — along with the previously announced retirements of six other Southwest directors — will go into effect on Nov. 1. Following his departure from the board and related responsibilities, Kelly will assume the title of chairman emeritus. The newly reconstituted board will appoint a new independent chairman. The board will be reduced to 13 members as of Southwest’s 2025 annual shareholder meeting.

Kelly said the airline is pleased to have reached “a collaborative resolution” with Elliott, continuing the board’s “refreshment” with the addition of new directors who bring complementary skills and experience. He said he is confident the newly reconstituted board “will continue to hold the leadership team accountable for executing its transformational plan and delivering financial performance.” Finally, Kelly said he believes “Southwest’s best days lie ahead under the vision and leadership of [CE{] Bob Jordan and the oversight of this reconstituted board.”

John Pike, an Elliott partner; and Bobby Xu, portfolio manager, said the company believes the strategic changes Southwest has announced since Elliott commenced its engagement, together with the new independent directors and governance improvements, “will position [Southwest] to enhance business performance, drive operational execution and evaluate additional changes to create long-term shareholder value.”

Elliott has informed Southwest that it withdrew its request to call a special meeting of shareholders and no longer intends to nominate candidates to stand for election to the company’s board.

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