United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby has been singing the praises of Boeing’s new boss, Kelly Ortberg, after the two met for lunch earlier this week.
In a LinkedIn post on August 15, 2024, Kirby, who has been one of Boeing’s most vocal critics in recent months, said he was “not only encouraged” by what he’d heard at the meeting but also came away with a “renewed confidence”.
The United Airlines CEO wrote: “Boeing is on the right path and will recover faster than most expect.”
Following the Alaska Airlines door plug blowout on January 5, 2024, Kirby became very publicly frustrated with Boeing and previous CEO Dave Calhoun.
A six-week audit carried out by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) following the Alaska accident also resulted in constraints being placed on Boeing deliveries, severely affecting United’s operations.
However, it seems that, following the recent appointment of Kelly Ortberg as Boeing CEO, Kirkby is feeling much more positive about their future.
Kirby’s LinkedIn post continued: “His engineering background at Rockwell Collins, combined with an instinct to be close to his frontline teams in Seattle, makes for a winning combination. It was clear from our discussion that he’s 100% engaged, understands the cultural changes needed to turn things around and is committed to listening to his employees and customers.”
He added: “Boeing’s 170,000+ employees have the expertise, drive, and commitment to get the company back to being one of the best and most important brands in the world. And Kelly is the right leader to take them there.”
According to CNBC, Ortberg also met with American Airlines CEO Robert Isom earlier this week.