Ousted American Airlines president lands at United immediately after $13M exit

CHICAGO, Aug. 29 (UPI) -- In what may be one of the most unusual management moves in U.S. aviation history, United Airlines made sure Monday that the gap in executive Scott Kirby's employment history lasted perhaps only a few minutes.

After he was dismissed as president of American Airlines earlier Monday, United immediately announced it had picked him up and installed him in the same position in its Chicago headquarters.

"Scott is a proven leader, whose deep airline experience and expertise will further accelerate our efforts to build the best airline in the industry," United CEO Oscar Munoz said in a statement. "Scott's appointment ... is the culmination of the formation of my senior leadership team."

His ouster from the Dallas-based carrier ended up a pretty lucrative ordeal for Kirby, 49, who was given a $13 million cash-and-stock severance deal on his way out the door at American.

"I am honored to be joining United at this important and exciting time and to have the opportunity to help accelerate the momentum the airline has achieved over the past year," Kirby stated. "I see real opportunity to build on the airline's vast global network and, along with my 86,000 United teammates, create the world's best airline for employees, customers, and shareholders."

Kirby was formerly an executive at America West Airlines and then US Airways when the two merged in 2005. He joined American when the carrier purchased US Air three years ago.

Now boarding: Scott Kirby. Welcome to the team! https://t.co/vUyWcLEsFA

— United (@united) August 29, 2016

American's Board of Directors decided Monday to replace Kirby as president with Chief Operating Officer Robert Isom -- as part of a long-term "succession planning process." USA Today reported that the move was made because some at American were skeptical the airline could keep the executive team of Kirby, Isom and CEO Doug Parker together for long.

"Robert is a world-class executive, and extremely well-qualified to assume the role of president," Parker, a longtime associate of Kirby's since the two started at America West in 1995, said in a statement Monday.

"Scott has been a key member of our team for over 20 years. We would not be where we are today without his leadership. The more than 100,000 team members of American Airlines -- most notably me -- will be forever grateful to Scott."

Kirby's severance package includes $3.85 million in cash and $9.3 million in vested stock, according to documents filed Monday.

The Wall Street Journal characterized Monday's transition as one of the most unusual management moves in the industry's history.

American announced the move at about 4 p.m. EDT Monday, which was followed by United's announcement (according to its Twitter page) at 4:27 p.m. -- indicating that Kirby's period of unemployment was but a minor hiccup.

United is the world's largest airline by destinations served, while American is the world's largest by revenue and fleet size.