IndiGo co-founder Rakesh Gangwal becomes chairman of Southwest Airlines

New Delhi: Billionaire and IndiGo co-founder Rakesh Gangwal has been appointed chairman of American carrier Southwest Airlines.

Gangwal, who joined Southwest's board in July this year, had also recently acquired $108 million worth of shares in the airline.

His appointment as chief executive comes just over a week after Southwest resolved disputes with Elliott Investment Management, one of the airline's largest shareholders, which had sought sweeping changes at the airline.

On Monday, Southwest announced the appointment of Gangwal as independent chairman and also named new board committee chairs.

“We begin the next era of change at Southwest as we build on its many successes and storied past. Our top priority as a newly constituted board is to work closely with Bob Jordan and the rest of the management team to return the airline to superior financial performance,” Gangwal said in a statement.

Jordan is president, chief executive officer and vice chairman. Recently, Gangwal bought shares of Southwest for $108 million. According to seven recent Securities and Exchange Commission filings by Southwest, Gangwal acquired 3.6 million shares of the airline's stock at prices between $29 and $30 apiece in multiple transactions.