ST. GEORGE, Utah, Sept. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- SkyWest Airlines, a subsidiary of SkyWest, Inc. (Nasdaq: SKYW), today celebrates the 35 year anniversary of Chairman and CEO Jerry Atkin. More than 10,000 employees at SkyWest Airlines are joining in a day's festivities, themed "A Little Better Every Day," one of Atkin's own mantras, in tribute to the leader who began his SkyWest career as Director of Finance in 1974.

"Making constant improvements to everything we do - even if those improvements are small - has brought us success in the past, and it will continue to bring success in the future," said Atkin.

Ask any of the 10,000 or so SkyWest employees about Jerry C. Atkin, and you'll likely hear a specific example of how their long-time leader has made them feel appreciated. He consistently remembers names and job responsibilities and unfailingly thanks individuals for "everything they are doing." As he travels throughout the SkyWest system, Jerry Atkin always shows concern for employees and the people they serve, as evidenced in thoughts about their long-time leader shared by employees:

"SkyWest culture is still a family culture because of the people that work here, and it all starts at the top with Jerry," said regional chief flight attendant Laralee Anderson. "He sets that example for others and it shows!"

"Jerry has always been known for his approachability and genuine interest in SkyWest people," continued Steve Black, director - stations. "He clearly values everyone's role within the airline, and appears honored to be a part of helping to create and sustain so many opportunities and successes for so many people."

"Jerry has done a lot of great things in 35 years, and I think he instills a continued optimism and desire for improvement in all of SkyWest's people," said Chip Childs, SkyWest Airlines President and COO. "SkyWest is very fortunate to have Jerry's leadership - there are really very few who have done so much for one company."

In 1975, Atkin became the youngest president of a scheduled airline at age 26, though he continued to write tickets, fuel airplanes and load bags even then. From the airline's humble beginnings through the company's immense growth, Jerry has built a team of leaders who have positioned SkyWest as the industry's premier regional airline. He credits much, if not all of the airline's success to its people.

Jerry and his wife Carolyn live in St. George, Utah and have four children.

SkyWest Airlines is the world's largest independently-owned regional airline. SkyWest Airlines has been named Regional Airline of the Year twice by Air Transport World magazine and was awarded the Federal Aviation Administration's AMT Gold Award for maintenance training in 2004, 2005 and 2008, and the AMT Diamond award in 2006. SkyWest was also named the Number One On-Time Mainland Airline in the United States by the Department of Transportation for 2003, 2004 and 2005, years in which it served more than 40 million passengers. In 2007 and 2008 SkyWest was named Bombardier's most reliable CRJ200 Operator in the Americas. System-wide, SkyWest employs more than 10,500 aviation professionals and serves a total of 153 cities in 40 states, seven Canadian provinces and two Mexico cities with more than 1,600 daily departures. Under the SkyWest, Inc. umbrella, Atlantic Southeast Airlines and SkyWest Airlines form the world's largest regional airline alliance.

SOURCE SkyWest Airlines

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