ATLAS CEO CHOWDRY DIES IN PRIVATE JET CRASH

ATLAS CEO CHOWDRY DIES IN PRIVATE JET CRASH       Michael A. Chowdry, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Atlas Air Inc., and a Wall Street Journal reporter died Wednesday afternoon when a private jet piloted by Chowdry crashed in an open field near Denver, Colo.
      Chowdry, an experienced pilot, was taking Jeff Cole, the Wall Street Journal reporter, for a flight in his private jet prior to conducting an interview.
      The National Transportation Safety Board is conducting an investigation into the cause of the crash.
      Richard Shuyler, executive vice president for Atlas Air, will assume Chowdry’s chief executive responsibilities. James Matheny, executive vice president of operations, will continue to be responsible for the operational aspects of the business.
      Shuyler joined Atlas shortly after the company was founded in 1992, after spending more than 20 years in management positions in the passenger airline industry. Matheny has also been with Atlas since its inception, after serving major U.S. passenger airlines.
      Atlas, the world’s third-largest cargo carrier, operates a fleet of B747 freighters for airlines under long-term contracts which include aircraft, crew, maintenance and insurance. Atlas, which has experienced record growth over the past three years, was scheduled to release its fourth-quarter earnings today. Instead, those results
will be released tomorrow. Shuyler did say the company’s cash position at year-end equaled $608 million.