Honeywell vs United Airlines: Founders, CEOs and History
Honeywell was founded in 1906 by Albert Butz, Mark C. Honeywell and is led by Vimal Kapur. United Airlines was founded in 1926 by Walter T. Varney, William Boeing and is led by Scott Kirby.
Company facts
Honeywell
- Founded
- 1906
- Headquarters
- Charlotte, North Carolina
- Current CEO
- Vimal Kapur
- Employees
- 50,000
United Airlines
- Founded
- 1926
- Headquarters
- Chicago, Illinois
- Current CEO
- Scott Kirby
- Employees
- 113,200
Founders
Honeywell
Albert Butz
Albert Butz was a Swiss-born American inventor whose work is the origin of Honeywell. In 1885 he patented the 'damper flapper', an early automatic thermostat mechanism for controlling indoor temperature.
Mark C. Honeywell
Mark C. Honeywell was an American industrialist who gave the company its name. He was a heating contractor, and in 1906 he founded the Honeywell Heating Specialty Company to make hot water heat generators.
United Airlines
Walter T. Varney
Walter T. Varney founded Varney Air Lines, which won Contract Air Mail Route 5 and flew its first route between Pasco, Washington, and Elko, Nevada, via Boise, on April 6, 1926.
William Boeing
William Boeing formed Boeing Air Transport in 1927 to fly the Chicago-San Francisco air mail route and then, with Frederick Rentschler, created United Aircraft and Transport Corporation in 1929.
CEOs and their tenures
Honeywell
- David M. Cote2002–2017
Chairman and CEO
Under Cote Honeywell grew its market value and margins, and he handed the chief executive role to Darius Adamczyk in 2017.
Source - Darius Adamczyk2017–2023
Former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Adamczyk oversaw $7.5 billion in strategic divestitures to modernize Honeywell's portfolio and built the software-and-services strategy that his successor, Vimal Kapur, used as the technical foundation for the 2025-2026 three-way breakup -- the Forge platform…
Source - Vimal Kapur2023–present
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Kapur is notable among major American industrial CEOs for reaching the top of a Fortune 500 company without a MBA or an US university degree.
Source
United Airlines
- Oscar Munoz2015–2020
Former CEO
Munoz handed over to Scott Kirby in May 2020 and served as executive chairman for a transition period.
Source - J. Scott Kirby2020–present
Chief Executive Officer
Under Kirby, United's revenue rose from $15.4 billion in 2020 to a record $59.1 billion in 2025, with premium cabins and MileagePlus as the main growth drivers.
Source
Timeline: Honeywell and United Airlines side by side
1885Honeywell
Albert Butz Patents the Damper Flapper Thermostat
Albert Butz files his first automatic temperature-control patent and forms the Butz Thermo-Electric Regulator Company, creating the thermostat as a mass-market product for home furnaces.
1906Honeywell
Honeywell Heating Specialty Company Founded
Mark C. Honeywell founds a heating-equipment business in Wabash, Indiana, that will later merge into the Honeywell name.
1926United Airlines
Varney Air Lines begins
United traces its roots to Varney Air Lines and early air mail service.
1927Honeywell
Minneapolis-Honeywell Regulator Company Formed
Mark Honeywell's heating business merges with the Electric Heat Regulator Company -- the descendant of Butz's original thermostat patents -- forming the direct ancestor of modern Honeywell, with W.R. Sweatt as chairman and Honeywell as president.
1931United Airlines
United Air Lines organized
United Air Lines was formed to manage airline subsidiaries tied to United Aircraft and Transport.
1997United Airlines
Star Alliance founded
United became one of the founding members of Star Alliance.
1999Honeywell
AlliedSignal and Honeywell Combine
AlliedSignal acquires Honeywell in a roughly $15 billion stock deal and keeps the Honeywell name for the combined aerospace, materials, and controls conglomerate.
2010United Airlines
Continental merger closes
UAL Corporation completed the Continental merger, later operating under the United brand.
2015United Airlines
Oscar Munoz becomes CEO
Oscar Munoz became chief executive of United in September 2015.
2018Honeywell
Honeywell Forge Launched
then-CEO Darius Adamczyk launches Honeywell Connected Enterprise, which becomes Honeywell Forge, a cloud-based industrial IoT platform positioned as the company's top strategic priority for shifting toward recurring software revenue.
2020United Airlines
Scott Kirby becomes CEO
Scott Kirby succeeded Oscar Munoz as CEO in May 2020.
2025Honeywell
Three-Way Breakup Announced
CEO Vimal Kapur announces a plan to split Honeywell into three independent public companies -- Aerospace, Solstice Advanced Materials, and automation-focused Honeywell Technologies -- following pressure from activist investor Elliott Management.
2025Honeywell
Advanced Materials Separated as Solstice
Honeywell completes the spin-off of its Advanced Materials business as the independent, Nasdaq-listed Solstice Advanced Materials on October 30, 2025.
2025United Airlines
Revenue reaches record level
United reported record 2025 total operating revenue of $59.1 billion.
2026Honeywell
Honeywell Aerospace Spin-Off Completed
Honeywell completes the Aerospace spin-off in June 2026, and the parent begins operating as the pure-play automation company Honeywell Technologies.
2026Honeywell
Quantinuum IPO
Quantinuum lists on Nasdaq as QNT, raising $1.68 billion at $60 per share; Honeywell deconsolidates it in Q2 2026.
2026Honeywell
Warehouse and PSS Businesses Sold
Honeywell Technologies sells Warehouse and Workflow Solutions (Intelligrated) to American Industrial Partners in July and PSS to Brady for $1.4 billion in August 2026.
2026United Airlines
Q2 2026 revenue up 16%
United reported Q2 2026 revenue of $17.7 billion and raised full-year adjusted EPS guidance to $9-$11 despite nearly $6 billion in added fuel costs.
Acquisitions
Honeywell
- Honeywell Aerospace spin-off2026Undisclosed
- Advanced Materials separation2025Undisclosed
- Access Solutions (Carrier Global)2024$5B
- Elster2015$5.1B
- Intermec2013$600M
- Pittway Corporation2000$2.2B
Questions about Honeywell vs United Airlines
Who is the CEO of Honeywell Technologies and United Airlines Holdings, Inc.?
Honeywell Technologies is led by Vimal Kapur and United Airlines Holdings, Inc. is led by Scott Kirby. Both serve as the top executive responsible for the company's strategy, operations, and financial performance.
When was Honeywell Technologies founded vs United Airlines Holdings, Inc.?
Honeywell Technologies was founded in 1906 — 20 years before United Airlines Holdings, Inc., which was founded in 1926. Honeywell Technologies's longer operating history gives it a deeper track record but also potentially more institutional inertia compared to the younger United Airlines Holdings, Inc..
How many employees does Honeywell Technologies have compared to United Airlines Holdings, Inc.?
Honeywell Technologies employs approximately 50,000 people, while United Airlines Holdings, Inc. employs approximately 113,200. United Airlines Holdings, Inc. has the larger workforce at 113,200 employees, compared to Honeywell Technologies's 50,000. A higher headcount does not necessarily imply greater efficiency — it often reflects differences in business model (e.g., manufacturing vs. software).
Where are Honeywell Technologies and United Airlines Holdings, Inc. headquartered?
Both Honeywell Technologies and United Airlines Holdings, Inc. are headquartered in United States, meaning they operate under the same primary regulatory and tax environment.
Who founded Honeywell Technologies and United Airlines Holdings, Inc.?
Honeywell Technologies was founded by Albert Butz, Mark C. Honeywell. United Airlines Holdings, Inc. was founded by Walter T. Varney, William Boeing.
Which company has a longer operating history — Honeywell Technologies or United Airlines Holdings, Inc.?
Honeywell Technologies has been operating for approximately 120 years, making it the more established of the two companies. United Airlines Holdings, Inc. has been in operation for around 100 years. A longer operating history often signals greater institutional resilience and brand recognition, though it can also mean slower adaptation to new market conditions.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the Honeywell vs United Airlines overview