As CEO of Delta Air Lines, Ed Bastian leads a team of 100,000 global professionals who are building the world’s premiere international airline, powered by a people-driven, customer-focused culture and spirit of innovation.
Under Bastian’s leadership, Delta is transforming the air travel experience with generational investments in technology, aircraft, airport facilities and, most importantly, Delta’s employees worldwide. A more than 25-year Delta veteran, Bastian has been a critical leader in Delta’s long-term strategy and champion of putting Delta’s shared values of honesty, integrity, respect, perseverance and servant leadership at the core of every decision.
Since being named Delta’s CEO in May 2016, Bastian has expanded Delta’s leading position as the world’s most reliable airline while growing its global footprint and enhancing the customer experience in the air and on the ground. During his tenure as CEO, Delta has become the world’s most awarded airline, having been named the Wall Street Journal’s top U.S. airline; Air Transport World's Airline of the Year; the top-ranking airline in Fortune’s World's Most Admired Companies; the Platinum Award recipient for operational excellence by Cirium; among Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies list and many more.
In 2018, Fortune magazine named Bastian among “The World’s 50 Greatest Leaders,” and in 2019, he was elected to the membership of the Council on Foreign Relations. In 2021, amidst a global pandemic, Bastian was awarded for his Executive Leadership in FlightGlobal’s 2021 Airline Strategy Awards and named among the Top 10 CEOs of 2021 in Glassdoor’s Employees’ Choice Awards as a leader who excelled at supporting their people. He was most recently honored by his peer CEOs and named Chief Executive magazine’s 2023 Chief Executive of the Year in addition to the 2024 Georgian of the Year by Georgia Trend Magazine.
Bastian’s values-based leadership propelled the airline to become the industry leader and a trusted global brand, guided by empathy, humanity and devotion to service, which has served Delta well in good times and bad. He has served as a Delta leader and steered the company through the most challenging periods of the company’s history, including 9/11, bankruptcy and COVID-19.
Bastian joined Delta in 1998 as Vice President – Finance and Controller. He was named Chief Financial Officer in 2005, and in 2007, he was appointed to serve as Delta’s President.
Prior to joining Delta, Bastian held senior finance positions at Frito-Lay International and Pepsi-Cola International. Bastian started his career with Price Waterhouse, where he became an audit partner in its New York practice.
Bastian grew up in Poughkeepsie, New York, and graduated from St. Bonaventure University with a bachelor’s degree in business administration.
Bastian grew up in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., and graduated from St. Bonaventure University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration. He lives in Atlanta, and is deeply involved in his faith, family and community.
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