Why Delta’s CEO Often Flies Economy, Despite Earning $27 Million Per Year

I always find it sort of cute, smart, and hilarious, how airline CEOs like to flex about how they fly economy any chance they get, even if they’re not asked about it. Here’s the latest example of that — this showed up in my algorithm, and it gets at a bigger point that I think is interesting to discuss.

Delta CEO talks about his flying habits, traveling in economy

Fortune published a short video interview with Delta CEO Ed Bastian, about his travel habits. He mentioned a few things that I think people might find interesting:

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• Bastian is usually one of the last people to board, and the Delta teams are always rushing to make sure he’s there, because planes won’t wait for him
• Bastian was asked about how he passes time on flights, and he answered that he usually catches up on emails; he then threw in how many times when he travels, he’s in economy, often next to the restroom
• He said customers often recognize him and come back to economy to ask why he’s there, and he claims he says “that’s about what my ticket could afford”
• He said that his fellow economy passengers often “have a lot of fun” when he’s there
• He was asked what his favorite snack and drink to order is, and he said Biscoffs and Coke Zero
• He was asked what his favorite airport is, and he said Atlanta, because it means he’s home

You can see the video for yourself below. For context, Bastian earned $27 million last year, making him the world’s second highest paid airline CEO (the previous year he earned $34 million, and was the world’s highest paid).

Why airline CEOs fly economy, and love to brag about it

I’m sure someone will be around shortly to suggest otherwise, but I’m not writing about this to pick on Bastian. It’s just that these were some recent comments he made, and it gets at a bigger trend I’ve noticed.

It doesn’t matter which of the “big three” airline CEOs we’re talking about, they all love to mention how they often fly economy every chance they get. “What did you have for breakfast today?” “Well, you know, I was flying… in economy… and…” As you can see above, Bastian threw in how he was in economy in reference to a question about how he passes time on flights.

The major airline CEOs absolutely fly economy on domestic flights with some frequency. They also often fly in first class, and also fly private. You can also bet that on long haul international flights, they always fly in premium cabins.

So, why do these people who make tens of millions of dollars per year fly in economy on domestic flights, when they could afford whatever they wanted? I’d argue that them flying economy is probably one of the more strategic things they could do in terms of perception:

• For one, the reason they’re often in economy is because they’re planning travel last minute, and first class is sold out; all these airline CEOs of course get unlimited positive space travel in the most premium cabin, if there are any open seats
• An airline CEO isn’t going to fly on a competing airline in first class just to avoid economy on their own airline, as the optics of that would be awful
• In terms of employee perception of management, flying in economy makes them a lot more relatable, and these kinds of stories spread fast; sure, maybe the CEO is paid as much as a couple of hundred employees, but at least he travels like the rest of them (sometimes)
• Airline CEOs are sort of celebrities among brand loyal customers, and I’ve seen a countless number of stories go viral, when people were shocked to see CEOs in economy
• Airlines make a large percentage of their profits from their loyalty programs, and first class upgrades is one of the biggest perks that makes people want to earn elite status; it looks better when the CEO isn’t taking up one of those seats
• I love Bastian mentioning how he’s usually among the last to board, as if that’s a sacrifice he’s making; something tells me that he doesn’t have to gate check his bags too often, so that’s actually the best time to board 😉

But anyway, what Bastian says is true of the industry. Airline executives often do fly economy on shorter flights, and it’s probably the best ROI they can get in terms of goodwill while in public. But internationally they almost always fly in the most premium cabin, and also don’t be surprised to see them at FBOs.

Bottom line

Delta CEO Ed Bastian recently mentioned how he often flies in economy, in response to a question about how he passes time on flights. Some people are surprised to hear these kinds of things, but it’s super common for airline CEOs to fly in economy on domestic flights.

For one, they often plan last minute (or have plans change), and there simply aren’t any first class seats available anymore. But even beyond that, the optics of them flying in economy is great, so I think that’s a big motivation as well.

What do you make of Bastian’s comments, and the practice of airline CEOs often flying in economy?