Howard D. Putnam (born August 21, 1937) is an American businessman. He was CEO of

Southwest Airlines Southwest Airlines Co., or simply Southwest, is a Major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States that formerly operated on a low-cost carrier model. It is headquartered in the Love Field, Dallas, Love Field neighborhood ...

for three years, and later CEO of

Braniff International Airways Braniff Airways, Inc., operated as Braniff International Airways from 1948 until 1965, and then Braniff International from 1965 until the cessation of air operations, was an American airline that operated from 1928 until 1982 and continues to ...

at the time of its

bankruptcy Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the deb ...

Career

When Putnam was 23 years old, he was a sales representative for Capital Airlines. He joined

United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. is a Major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States headquartered in Chicago, Chicago, Illinois that operates an extensive domestic and international route network across the United States and six ...

when Capital was acquired by United in 1961. 17 years on, he became Group Vice President, Marketing at United Airlines before leaving to head Southwest Airlines. From August 1978 to 1981, Putnam was President and CEO of Southwest Airlines. He left Southwest in September 1981 to head ailing Braniff. In 1982, he had a conversation with

American Airlines American Airlines, Inc. is a major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, and is the Largest airlines in the world, largest airline in the ...

CEO Robert Crandall, in which he was told by Crandall that if Braniff raised their prices, American would too. Putnam declined, but the U.S. Federal Government later brought an

antitrust Competition law is the field of law that promotes or seeks to maintain market competition by regulating anti-competitive conduct by companies. Competition law is implemented through public and private enforcement. It is also known as antitrust l ...

action against Crandall and American based on a recording of the conversation.Time Magazin
Dirty Tricks in Dallas
By David S. Jackson;John S. DeMott;Allen Pusey Monday, Mar. 07, 1983 Putnam was president of Braniff when it ceased operation in bankruptcy on May 12, 1982. He is currently a

motivational speaker A motivational speaker (or inspirational speaker) is a speaker who makes speeches intended to motivate or inspire an audience. Such speakers may attempt to challenge or transform their audiences. The speech itself is popularly known as a pep ta ...

and author of ''The Winds of Turbulence: A Ceo's Reflections on Surviving and Thriving on the Cutting Edge of Corporate Crisis''. He also produced a DVD:''Pass It On, Share The W.I.S.H.'', which was scheduled for release on April 1, 2007.

References

External links

Official website

Howard Putnam Biography
1937 births American airline chief executives Braniff Living people {{US-business-bio-1930s-stub 20th-century American businesspeople