My personal observation
I never thought he would be picked only because I didnt think he was uber management material. No cut towards him; more of a complement.
In SFS he did a lot of good to help the pilots in many circumstances that were contrary to what I think the folks in the Planet wanted. All my dealings with him were positive.
Then again, others may have had experiences different than mine. I do know that if you get on his wrong side, like him thinking that you are BSing him....not a good thing. I have seen it happen. But any time I have had to deal with him, he was fair and listened to what you had to say.
I have seen a few that get into upper management that end up changing for the worse over time. I really hope it doesnt happen to him.