Jeff Smisek's departure from United Continental Holdings Inc. caps a turbulent tenure atop the world's second-largest airline and leaves a number of challenges still looming for his successor.
Since being formed by the merger—which Mr. Smisek helped engineer—of United Airlines and Continental Airlines five years ago, the combined carrier has suffered persistent operational woes.
New Chief Executive Oscar Munoz, who is taking over following Mr. Smisek's departure in the wake of an internal investigation linked to a government probe at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, will be tasked with addressing the operational issues, and with trying to improve the carrier's troubled relations with its workforce.
After years of lagging behind its peers, United recently has appeared to turn the corner financially. Net profit nearly doubled last year to a record $ 1.1 billion, and for the first six months of 2015 was $ 1.7 billion, up from $ 180 million in the prior-year period. A cost-cutting program helped, but falling fuel prices helped even more.
But in many ways the United-Continental combination has failed to live up to the considerable promise executives highlighted at the time. Continental brought a powerful hub in Newark and extensive service to Europe and Latin America. United was strong in the U.S.'s upper Midwest and West and had an enviable Asian network.
United has suffered five major computer problems since 2012, when its combination of the systems of United and Continental triggered months of problems for fliers. The latest glitch, in July, resulted in the temporary grounding of its global fleet.
The airline also has struggled with poor punctuality and cancellations, as well as prominent customer-service breakdowns that triggered criticism from fliers.
In addition, United has yet to successfully negotiate combined labor agreements with its 21,000 flight attendants, some of its most important front-line workers, or for its 9,000 mechanics.
Mr. Munoz is a longtime United board member who was previously president and chief operating officer of railroad operator CSX Corp. He told United employees on Tuesday that he plans to dedicate himself "to making our airline flyer-friendly." Mr. Munoz also told analysts he expects to spend his first 90 days visiting United locations and employees, and that he hopes to expedite efforts to secure outstanding labor deals.
Capt. Jay Heppner, chairman of the leadership council of the Air Line Pilots Association branch at United, said in a message to his 12,500 members Tuesday that Mr. Munoz "has impeccable credentials in the business world, along with a track record of working with labor on many levels."
The pilot chief, who also serves on United's board and is a frequent critic of the company, said his group welcomes the chance to work with Mr. Munoz and his team to build "from a new perspective, a culture at United Airlines where management and employees work together for the betterment of our airline."
Write to Susan Carey at susan.carey@wsj.com
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