Mr. Rakesh Gangwal instituted the Champa Devi Gangwal Chair in honour of his mother. Mr. Gangwal (BT/ME/1975) is an Indian-American businessman and the co-founder of InterGlobe Aviation Limited, known as IndiGo, India's largest airline by fleet size and passengers carried. He currently serves as an Independent Director on the Board of Southwest Airlines and is the Chair of its Fleet Oversight Committee.
Before co-founding IndiGo in 2006, Mr. Gangwal served as Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer of Worldspan Technologies Inc. from 2003 to 2007. Prior to this, he was the President and Chief Executive Officer of US Airways Group, Inc., having previously served as its Chief Operating Officer. He also held executive roles at Air France and United Airlines.
Mr. Gangwal's association with the airline industry began in 1980, when, as an Associate at Booz Allen & Hamilton, Inc., he worked closely with United Airlines. He joined United Airlines in 1984 and subsequently held a series of leadership positions. Earlier in his career, he worked as a financial analyst at Ford Motor Company and as a production and planning engineer with Philips India Ltd.
After graduating from IIT Kanpur, Mr. Gangwal earned his MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in 1979. He was named a Distinguished Alumnus of IIT Kanpur in 2000 and was recognized by BusinessWeek magazine in 1999 as one of the 25 top global executives.