40TH ANNUAL WILLIAM A . PAT TERSON TR ANSPORTATION LEC TURE
Ed Bastian Chief Executive Officer Delta Air Lines
Leadership and Air Travel Through the Pandemic and Beyond
WEDNESDAY MAY 4, 2022 7:30 P.M.
About William A. Patterson A central figure in the United States air transport industry for more than four decades, William A. “Pat” Patterson served as president and chairman of United Airlines from 1934 until his retirement in 1966. He was a life trustee of Northwestern University and was instrumental in the establishment and strategic leadership of the Northwestern University Transportation Center (NUTC). In his honor, Northwestern established the William A. Patterson Transportation Endowment in 1978. More than 60 corporate contributions and 1,200 individual donors funded the Patterson endowment. The Endowment helps support the activities of the Distinguished Patterson Chair in Transportation, the annual Patterson Transportation Lecture and the aviation collection of the Transportation Library. The Patterson Chair serves as an intellectual focal point for transportation research and education at Northwestern, most of which is coordinated through NUTC. Professor Hani Mahmassani, Director of NUTC, holds the Patterson Distinguished Chair in Transportation.
About NUTC The Northwestern University Transportation Center (NUTC) is one of the world’s leading interdisciplinary education and research institutions, serving industry, government, and the public. Founded in 1954 to make substantive and enduring contributions to the movement of freight, goods, people, energy and information, the NUTC stands at the forefront of transportation research and education, bringing together academic researchers, students, and business affiliates in open exploration of transportation and supply chain operations. In so doing, the Center aims to influence national and international transportation policy, management, operations, and technological developments, with the goal of making transportation and supply chain operations more productive, efficient, safe, secure, environmentally friendly, and socially beneficial. Northwestern University Transportation Center 600 Foster Street | Evanston, IL 60208-4055 847.491.2280 | tcinfo@northwestern.edu www.transportation.northwestern.edu
About Ed Bastian As CEO of Delta Air Lines, Ed Bastian leads a team of 75,000 global professionals that is building the world’s premier international airline, powered by a people-driven, customerfocused culture and spirit of innovation. Under Ed’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 23-year Delta veteran, Ed 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, Ed 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 No. 1 airline by J.D. Power; Wall Street Journal’s top U.S. airline; the top-ranking airline in Fortune’s World’s Most Admired Companies; the most on-time global airline by FlightGlobal; a Glassdoor Best Place to Work; and more. Ed’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.As the world emerges from the pandemic, Delta is leading the industry in the recovery, harnessing the power of innovation and Delta’s people-focused culture to set the course for the future of travel. Ed joined Delta in 1998 as V.P. – Finance and Controller and was promoted to S.V.P. in 2000. He left Delta in 2005 and became Senior ice President and Chief Financial fficer of Acuity rands. He returned to Delta six months later to become Chief Financial fficer, and in 2007 he was appointed to serve as Delta’s President. efore oining Delta, Ed held senior finance positions at Frito Lay International and Pepsi Cola International. Ed started his career with Price Waterhouse, where he became an audit partner in its New York practice. Ed grew up in Poughkeepsie, New York, 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.
Distinguished Patterson Lectures 2021 Ann Drake Lincoln Road Enterprises
2000 Frederick W. Smith FedEx Corporation
2019 Lior Ron Uber Frieght
1999 Robert Krebs urlington Northern Santa Fe ailway
2018 Dennis Muilenburgg The Boeing Company
1998 Lua Cheng Eng Neptune Orient Lines, Ltd.
2017 Lance Fritz Union Pacific ailway
1997 Herb Kelleher Southwest Airline Co.
2016 Jeff Silver Coyote, A UPS Company
1996 John Welsby ritish ailways
2015 Doug Parker American Airlines
1995 William “Gus” Pagonis Sears, Roebuck and Co.
2014 Chris Lofgren Schneider
1994 Karel Van Miert European Union
2013 Irwin M. Jacobs, Ph.D. Qualcomm
1993 Robert Herman, Ph.D. University of Texas at Austin
2012 Alan Mulally Ford Motor Company
1992 J.B. Hunt J.B. Hunt Transport, Inc.
2011 Jeff Smisek United Airlines
1991 Heinz Ruhnau Lufthansa German Airlines
2010 Craig Philip, Ph.D. Ingram Barge Company
1990 Donald K. “Deke” Slayton Space Services Inc. of America
2009 Scott McCallum Aidmatrix Foundation, Inc.
1989 Sir Colin Marshall ritish Airways
2008 Matthew K. Rose NSF ailway
1988 William W. Winpisinger International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers
2007 Mark V. Rosenker National Transportation Safety Board 2006 Peter D. McDonald United Airlines 2005 Lawrence D. Burns General Motors Corporation 2004 Michael L. Eskew United Parcel Service, Inc. 2003 David Neeleman et lue Airways 2002 Norman Y. Mineta U.S. Dept. of Transportation 2001 Donald Schneider Schneider National, Inc.
1987 Frank Lorenzo Texas Air Corporation 1986 Robert L. Crandall AMR Corporation, American Airlines 1985 Marvin L. Manheim Northwestern University 1984 Daryl Wyckoff, Ph.D. Harvard University 1982 Alfred E. Kahn Cornell University 1980 Richard J. Ferris United Airlines, Inc.