OVERLAND PARK, Kan. -- Sprint (NYSE:FON) today announced the appointment of William H. Swanson to the company's board of directors.

Swanson is chairman and CEO of Raytheon Company, an industry leader in defense and government electronics, space, information technology, technical services, and business and special mission aircraft. Headquartered in Waltham, Mass., Raytheon employs 78,000 people worldwide with 2003 sales of $18.1 billion.

Before adding the responsibilities of chairman to his position in January 2004, Swanson was CEO and president of the company. Prior to that, he was president of the company, responsible for Raytheon's government and defense operations. Swanson joined Raytheon in 1972 and has held a wide range of leadership positions across a broad spectrum of Raytheon's business units. He graduated magna cum laude from California Polytechnic State University and performed graduate work in business administration at Golden Gate University.

"We are very pleased to add Bill Swanson to the board. He is an outstanding leader and brings extraordinary talent, depth and experience in such key areas as technology, operations and national defense and security," said Linda Koch Lorimer, chair of Sprint's nominating and corporate governance committee. "These assets will greatly complement and add value to the Sprint board."

In addition to his professional experience, Swanson also is a member of several leading public, private and government boards and associations.

With the appointment of Swanson, the Sprint board stands at 11 directors. Nine of the 11 directors are independent based on the board's 2004 determination. Gary Forsee, Sprint chairman and chief executive officer, is the only employee director.

Sprint Corp.