German publication Der Spiegel ran a fascinating story about Lufthansa Group CEO Carsten Spohr, whereby a reporter shadowed Spohr for a day, while he traveled, worked at Lufthansa Group headquarters, etc. The gist of the story is essentially that shareholders like Spohr, while customers don’t.
The story provides some interesting insights into Spohr’s personality, and has one detail that surprised me most.
In this post:
Carsten Spohr travels with a bodyguard
In this story, a reporter flew with Spohr, as he traveled from his home in Munich to Lufthansa Group headquarters in Frankfurt on a Friday morning. There’s one detail that stands out the most there, as flagged by SMK77:
- Spohr boarded the plane last and took seat 6D, while his bodyguard was already seated across the aisle in seat 6C, despite not having been seen before
- Upon arrival in Frankfurt, while passengers took a bus to the terminal, Spohr was instead driven in a private van, and his bodyguard sat in the front of the van
While the story goes into great detail about the day, that’s the only mention of the bodyguard. I can’t help but find that to be quite surprising, since I’ve never otherwise heard of an airline CEO having a bodyguard. CEOs of airlines (and airline groups) are of course running huge, multi-billion dollar businesses, and get a lot of executive perks. However, I never thought that a bodyguard would be among those.
It’s possible I’m just not familiar with this, though. Does anyone know of other airline CEOs who have bodyguards? If so, are they with them 24/7, any time when they’re in public, just when they travel, or what?
Is Spohr worried about customers or staff confronting him in an unpleasant way? Does he intentionally fly with a bodyguard (which seems odd, in the sterile area of an airport), or does the bodyguard just travel with him between his home in Munich and his office in Frankfurt, and therefore flies with him?
In late 2023, there was a story of how a 21-year-old Lufthansa fanboy reportedly asked for a selfie with Spohr on a flight, and ended up getting accused of spying on the CEO. In something that sounds like it’s straight out of a movie, Lufthansa security personnel reportedly requested to meet this guy in a private apartment, and his cell phone was even confiscated during the meeting. I can’t help but wonder if Spohr having a bodyguard relates to this incident, or what.
Some interesting observations about Spohr
Personally I’m not a huge Spohr fan. I’ve never met the guy, but from observing the industry and based on what I’ve heard:
- He has never struck me as being very likable or approachable
- Spohr has a complete lack of focus on passenger experience, and has done a horrible job with implementing new products, like the Allegris cabins
- Spohr’s primary skills seem to be setting up new subsidiaries to reduce labor costs whenever possible, and exerting his influence to keep the German aviation landscape uncompetitive (by blocking some Gulf carrier expansion, keeping airport fees high to deter ultra low cost carriers, etc.)
In fairness to Spohr, whether or not I think he’s likable is of no consequence to him, and shouldn’t be. It goes without saying that the main job of an airline CEO is to deliver value for stakeholders.
To look at the European aviation industry, I just think it’s worth contrasting Spohr and Air France-KLM CEO Ben Smith, who has done exactly the opposite of Spohr — Air France and KLM are investing in their products with a sense of urgency, and one of Smith’s first orders of business at the airline was to eliminate Air France’s low cost subsidiary, and improve labor relations.
Anyway, what does this story conclude about Spohr? The following observations about Spohr stood out most to me:
- Spohr comes across as very confident, and tries to connect with people one-on-one, including frontline employees
- Spohr loves being the center of attention, and is happiest when he’s in the spotlight
- While in a team meeting about improving Lufthansa’s app, Spohr understandably criticizes it and says it’s not competitive, and the reporter concludes that “Spohr tells it as if he had nothing to do with it,” “as if he were a normal Lufthansa customer and not the top boss”
- The story finishes by talking about how Spohr is a big Bond fan, and when he’s asked about his favorite Bond character, he says “Bond is bigger than the actor in question, and that is of course also the case with Lufthansa and its boss,” and with that the writer concludes “for the first time He almost sounds a little humble that day”
Ouch…
Bottom line
A German reporter followed Lufthansa Group CEO Carsten Spohr for the day, and made some very interesting observations about him. They largely line up with what I would have expected, which is also why I’m surprised he’d want to be profiled in this way.
To me, the most surprising observation was that Spohr travels with a bodyguard. It’s possible that this is quite common in the industry and I’ve just never heard of it, though it came as a surprise to me.
What do you make of these Spohr observations?
What is wrong with having a bodyguard…?
After all Lufthans is one of Germany’s biggest employers with more than 120.000 employees worldwide. I always found Mr. Spohr perfectly likeable
What exactly is surprising about it? Do we all have such a patchy collective memory that we have forgotten the acid attack on the Innogy manager? In times when climate activists are free to commit ever more radical attacks and break the law without being harshly punished, no CEO, especially not of an airline, will take to the streets without protection. Times are changing. Fact.
I think that’s completely internal matter, nothing to be discussed outside the board. The author is just hyping his own name and personal opinion no one is asking. Pay your ticket at take your own seat. That’s all
When I worked for Adobe, our CEO Chuck Geschke was kidnapped and held for ransom. It's not crazy to have a security detail.
I guess it says everything about Lufthansa‘s customer orientation/service if the CEO needs a body guard while travelling with his own airline as a passenger. Think about all the open and delayed claims…
Of course a Lufthansa CEO will have a bodyguard or two 24/7. I met the Volkswagen CEO several times years ago, and he had at least 3 bodyguards around him at all times. Bulletproof car, with a car in front and another one behind, plus a couple of guys on motorcycles. Just watch the movie "The Baader Meinhof Complex" (2008) to see the Germany history of why large company CEOs must have bodyguards.
if a CEO requires a body guard is the result of a threat analysis and the risk appetite of the organisation that person works for; being if Lufthansa it would have surprised if the CEO would not have had a bodyguard; where and when bodyguards are with their protection person depends on daily analysis
There is nothing new in regard to DLH CEO’s having a bodyguard. I attended a celebration 24 years ago. At that time DLH CEO Jürgen Weber also had a bodyguard to protect him. It’s just part of the job and properly not up for discussion. DLH CEO’s are among other High-value-targets just like celebrities, ministers, royals etc.
What’s the problem?
It was before my time, but a former boss at United told me that when Stephen Wolf was Chairman and CEO, he traveled with a bodyguard and even had bulletproof glass installed in the executive suite. This was during a period of very strained labor relations - and Wolf was known to be an extreme hard a**. By the time I joined the airline after Wolf left, there was no bulletproof glass, and the new...
It was before my time, but a former boss at United told me that when Stephen Wolf was Chairman and CEO, he traveled with a bodyguard and even had bulletproof glass installed in the executive suite. This was during a period of very strained labor relations - and Wolf was known to be an extreme hard a**. By the time I joined the airline after Wolf left, there was no bulletproof glass, and the new CEO had a car and driver, but no bodyguard - at least when traveling domestically. Maybe in certain countries he would have on an as needed basis.
As someone who runs a ground transportation and security company and who provides Executive Protection to clients, we can't assume the principal requested an EP agent to stroke his own ego.
LH would have their own internal security department and who knows what threat assessment issues arose. Most corporate clients we work with, the board mandates security, not the individual.
Most large businesses have a corporate security department, and these would generally be expected to provide security to all staff at a level appropriate for the situation. Obviously, the LH security team feels that their CEO is exposing himself to very dangerous situations when mingling with staff and customers. I am not sure I disagree with their assessment.
Ultimately it's up to him to decide how he spends his money. But I can't stop thinking that if you've reached the point where you need to walk around with a bodyguard, despite living on the safest continent of the world, you seriously failed at life. Any middle management guy who makes half those money probably has a better quality of life than Carsten.
his money? That is an LH expense.
Why is this even worth mentioning?
I never flew with Luftwaffe / Lufthansa since they shot down my father during the second small disagreement ;)
It isn't unusual in the tech industry for high profile executives to have executive protection details. It's always there, although most tech executives prefer a light touch, and for it not to be obvious.
A guy like Spohr isn't worth billions. He isn't likely to be black bagged for ransom on the streets of Munich or Berlin. I think the level of executive protection he demands is an ego play, and to wall himself off...
It isn't unusual in the tech industry for high profile executives to have executive protection details. It's always there, although most tech executives prefer a light touch, and for it not to be obvious.
A guy like Spohr isn't worth billions. He isn't likely to be black bagged for ransom on the streets of Munich or Berlin. I think the level of executive protection he demands is an ego play, and to wall himself off from any criticism or confrontation. Typical pattern of narcissts--can dish it out but not take it.
I can imagine there are plenty of employees and customers (and perhaps a few board members) who’d like to take a swing at him. He needs the bodyguard…
If you haven't heard of other airline CEO's having a bodyguard --- that's because the security operation is doing its job.
On the other hand, if there is only one mention of a bodyguard in a lengthy story -- that's because someone was hired for the day to create the appearance of security.
As a matter of fact the bodyguard was mentioned twice in different paragraphs of the lengthy story - what conspiracy theory applies now?
I only met Richard Branson once - in the lounge at Gatwick. He turned up in jeans and sneakers, no bodyguard, no accompanying secretary or handler. Just a real regular guy talking to and thanking his customers.
Of my relatives who spent time with him at events in DC and elsewhere, none of them mentioned anything about him generally having private security around while socializing. He may have hired security sometimes, but he most certainly doesn’t seem to have it always when flying VS or when going to events where he has been with my relatives.
Having “executive protection” car service in high-income countries isn’t really delivering all that much security beyond...
Of my relatives who spent time with him at events in DC and elsewhere, none of them mentioned anything about him generally having private security around while socializing. He may have hired security sometimes, but he most certainly doesn’t seem to have it always when flying VS or when going to events where he has been with my relatives.
Having “executive protection” car service in high-income countries isn’t really delivering all that much security beyond for the drive, and it is a far cry from having around-the-clock private personal security officers worth much of anything in a “safe” country if you’re really worried about getting taken out by a committed violent opponent who has an above-moron IQ.
It could be perhaps a case of better safe than sorry... Germany experienced leftist ideology-driven murderous domestic terrorism, perpetrated by the Red Army Faction, and others, over several decades. Victims included many industrialists. It is maybe a spent force, but some members were/are on the run. As a matter of fact, one of the Red Army Faction members in hiding has been arrested in Berlin barely a month ago
It’s always been a cruel world out there. If I was a Guy like him with resources, I’d have a Reacher type guy as my ‘traveling assistant’ ;-)
Why is this a surprise? Why are you all so upset about a corporate executive having a body guard? This behavior is completely normal and acceptable for me. I can’t believe you wasted my time with this story. Your blog has really begun to fall of this content is what you need to post.
Mark Zuckerberg has the most insane bodyguard detail in the industry. Multiple buff dudes surround him even in the office for internal meetings with his own employees.
If he's in his conference room, which has a window to the outdoors, there are bodyguards stationed on the rooftop.
The tech industry is famous for open plan offices, and all the desks in Mark's work area are staffed with bodyguards posing as software engineers. Their computer monitors...
Mark Zuckerberg has the most insane bodyguard detail in the industry. Multiple buff dudes surround him even in the office for internal meetings with his own employees.
If he's in his conference room, which has a window to the outdoors, there are bodyguards stationed on the rooftop.
The tech industry is famous for open plan offices, and all the desks in Mark's work area are staffed with bodyguards posing as software engineers. Their computer monitors display text editors, but they are not actually writing code.
Mark has an escape chute from his conference to a car parked below that is ready to go ASAP.
He bought up all the homes around his own home in Palo Alto. In his San Francisco home, all the street parking nearby is taken up by security rotating in and out so as to technically comply with street parking maximum time limits. There are trash cans on the street but they're empty. All his trash is pre-incinerated.
I'm sure all his trash isn't incinerated, Facebook is still working fine a few seconds ago.
Similar to what someone said above, it is understandable Zuckerberg has bodyguards as he is worth hundreds of billions of dollars and kidnapping or violence is most likely a legitimate threat whereas Spohr is just another CEO.
Spohr is so obsessed with himself and way too vain to admit mistakes. And he definitely looks like an absolute bully. The way he survived a radical shakeup of the executive board, while customer satisfaction and the Allegris introduction are going up in flames, is insane to me.
I spoke at an event directly before Doug Parker (I shook his hand as we swapped microphones) and he had no bodyguard. I also saw him walking on the Katy Trail in Dallas—no bodyguard either.
In his defense of all things Lufthansa and Spohr, the Indo-German Lufthansa fanboy FT mod is claiming “all CEOs have bodyguards”. So not true, the “alternative facts” made me laugh.
"CEOs of airlines (and airline groups) are of course running huge, multi-billion dollar businesses, and get a lot of executive perks. However, I never thought that a bodyguard would be among those." Maybe surprising for a country like Germany but I can attest that many CEOs of big corporations have bodyguards in places like Asia and Latin America. Actually in Latin America, not only body guards but bullet proof cars and escort cars that follow...
"CEOs of airlines (and airline groups) are of course running huge, multi-billion dollar businesses, and get a lot of executive perks. However, I never thought that a bodyguard would be among those." Maybe surprising for a country like Germany but I can attest that many CEOs of big corporations have bodyguards in places like Asia and Latin America. Actually in Latin America, not only body guards but bullet proof cars and escort cars that follow the CEO car. Also, bodyguards for their family members as well. Very common.
A lot of “look at me” American CEOs of high-value companies hire former FBI agents and other such former government “security” types to provide “corporate security” for the CEO. Some of them have been awful dunces in my experience, and it probably explained in part why some of them ended up in the private security sector.
In Sao Paulo, I have a bulletproof car provided for me by the hotel. The door is sooooo thick and heavy.
I do not need one, but its an experience.
Considering how Lufty has fallen so far from gace in terms of customer complaints i am not surprised
I used to work at Emirates HQ. Tim Clark would walk right up to the door by himself with no body guard. Granted he parked literally by the entrance though.
Dubai is like a police state with a lot of technology in place to spy on the public. So his safety in the publicly veiled police state of Dubai was probably on par to the level of safety of the late Bill Richardson when he was on the ground in North Korea negotiating.
This isn't thst unusual. Most large companies will pay for a bodyguard as the sudden death of a CEO is not good for the company.
I normally love your articles but calling this out reads as clickbait (which admittedly I fell for)
I don’t see it as clickbait at all and see no need to chide Ben for posting it. I read it as an interesting insight into a CEO’s life. Granted some countries are indeed dangerous but Germany is a very safe country so yes it is surprising that a CEO would need a bodyguard. I have worked with Australian CEOs and I’ve not known one with a bodyguard or similar.
You must not remember the Baader-Meinhof days
Don't even have to go back in time, there are plenty of climate cultists today in Germany who e.g. have already broken into airports, damaged airplanes, glued themselves to the tarmac, ...
Ed Bastian has his own personal bodyguard and top cheerleader...my daddy!
It’s often the BODs that require the CEO and potentiality other C-Suite execs to maintain company paid security, including at their home.
A CEO in general is a valued asset of the company, so this is reasonable.
Considering the way Spohr runs the airline (and how popular his decisions are among staff and customers), I understand why he travels with a bodyguard. Frankly, I'm not surprised and I expected this.
It's normal for certain company heads to have protection. I don't think too many airline CEOs would have this, but if some do, Spohr makes the most sense.
He undoubtedly doesn't have the best relations with the workers on his airline,...
Considering the way Spohr runs the airline (and how popular his decisions are among staff and customers), I understand why he travels with a bodyguard. Frankly, I'm not surprised and I expected this.
It's normal for certain company heads to have protection. I don't think too many airline CEOs would have this, but if some do, Spohr makes the most sense.
He undoubtedly doesn't have the best relations with the workers on his airline, and he has to fly with them often. If your in a confined tin can filled with people potentially unhappy about the product and they recognize you, that is definetly a problem from Spohr's perspective. If I was in his shoes, I no doubt would also want security around me. He has probably also gotten threats that we the general public would not know about. I would not be surprised if that was the case. If there has been a threat, or Spohr has shown his fear or concern about safety, the board would have likely approved the funding for his own security detail. Or he may be paying for it out of his own pocket, but at such a high level, I think the former is most likely.
The higher ups will do a lot for the people they want to hold onto. If Spohr showed a concern for safety, and the board felt that he may leave the position if that concern was not addressed, they would approve the funds for his security. As Ben said, Spohr is very popular with the shareholders.
Spohr played up some talk about a male fan of his “stalking” him for trying to approach him on a flight to talk and later taking a photo with a quasi-life size cutout of Spohr and putting it up online. And so maybe that is how he justified an upgrade in “corporate security” to increase his sense of self-importance and up his distancing ability.
While there are places where CEOs of major companies are at...
Spohr played up some talk about a male fan of his “stalking” him for trying to approach him on a flight to talk and later taking a photo with a quasi-life size cutout of Spohr and putting it up online. And so maybe that is how he justified an upgrade in “corporate security” to increase his sense of self-importance and up his distancing ability.
While there are places where CEOs of major companies are at risk of being kidnapped and then held for ransom or threatened if unwilling to go into corrupt relationships, I don’t see why he would need this level of security in Germany and at airports while going out and about. If he is any more at risk than the German, Danish and Swedish billionaires whom I know to go around without security escorts at airports while in developed, politically stable countries, it would be a surprise to me. In this regard, Spohr reminds me more of the third world country politicians and bureaucrats who manufacture excuses and demand security escorts for ego purposes.
Seen Doug Parker twice when CEO: no security. Seen Scott Kirby once, no security.
It’s quite an interesting thing. Different companies/people/family offices that use security. All probably based on past trouble or lack there of…or folks that are full of themselves.
Yes, as many are saying, protection/security for CEOs is fairly common. And also sometimes for their families, depending on the situation. I've worked with a few tech CEOs in Silicon Valley and they've all had security, bodyguards, and one even had a driver who always carried a gun. One CEO had a team that was ex-Israeli military and you did not want to mess with those guys.
This is Germany, not America. Good luck even getting a permit for a firearm, let alone being able to carry it on a commercial aircraft and across borders (not a chance).
I do not find this that surprising, although bodyguard is probably not the term Lufthansa would use. He travels with security, just like a lot of large company CEO's do (especially in industries that aren't necessarily beloved by their customers). Most have 24 hour security at their home as well. The difference here is that LH CEO is flying commercial because he runs an airline, most other CEO's will be flying private.
Of the CEO billionaire-founders whose houses I’ve been at in high-income countries, most don’t have 24-hour year-round security personnel where they are. And most non-founder CEOs of major publicly-traded companies are far less well-off than they are. The idea that most have guards with them around the clock at their home too is just baloney. Personnel protection around the clock is expensive and typically low return. We are all replaceable at work.
Rarely any CEOs of European companies are allowed to fly private, and having a personal protection detail is extremely rare, except for specific events. A Chief Executive in Germany (any EU country really) isn't earning all that much money either unless they are the actual owner of the company. There was a time in German history when left-wing terrorism (RAF) was a big problem, and during that, many big-name executives got a security detail following...
Rarely any CEOs of European companies are allowed to fly private, and having a personal protection detail is extremely rare, except for specific events. A Chief Executive in Germany (any EU country really) isn't earning all that much money either unless they are the actual owner of the company. There was a time in German history when left-wing terrorism (RAF) was a big problem, and during that, many big-name executives got a security detail following several high-profile kidnappings and assassinations.
Given Lufthansa's recent struggles it could be mandated by their insurance company
European D&O insurance for CEO requiring armed escort while going around home country? Haven’t seen that with the big company CEOs whom I know in a variety of Schengen countries.
Not suprising at all. Many CEOs of global corporations are provided security. Meta spends 8 figures (25 million off the top of my head) to protect Zukerberg. He probably has a company size personnel protection.
He needs it because he’s got a history of being a prick, because his company’s actions annoy a lot of people, because he’s super high-profile, and there are a lot of people whom would love to have the access to all the personal data which his company has.
Spohr is not in the Zuckerberg, Bezos, Musk leagues. Most major listed company CEOs, including Spohr, are not them.
If you wanna talk about and criticize Lufthansa, Swiss and Austrian product rollouts I think you should also include Jens Ritter (Lufthansa Airlines CEO), Dieter Vranckx (Swiss CEO), and Annette Mann (Austrian CEO).
Spohr is the CEO of the entire group, which includes Technik (which has its own CEO as well), LSG SkyChefs (which has its own CEO as well), and so much more.
While I won’t argue that there've been a ton...
If you wanna talk about and criticize Lufthansa, Swiss and Austrian product rollouts I think you should also include Jens Ritter (Lufthansa Airlines CEO), Dieter Vranckx (Swiss CEO), and Annette Mann (Austrian CEO).
Spohr is the CEO of the entire group, which includes Technik (which has its own CEO as well), LSG SkyChefs (which has its own CEO as well), and so much more.
While I won’t argue that there've been a ton of blunders, Spohr likely wasn’t involved in leading those initiatives nor making decisions on the announcements around those blunders.
@ John -- There's no doubt that Spohr isn't solely responsible for the Allegris blunders. However, I think it's important to emphasize that Lufthansa Group chose to create a new premium product at the airline group level, rather than at the airline level. This same product is being installed on SWISS as well.
That's different than other airline groups, where there's not as much commonality between products (like Air France-KLM, IAG, etc.).
So don't you...
@ John -- There's no doubt that Spohr isn't solely responsible for the Allegris blunders. However, I think it's important to emphasize that Lufthansa Group chose to create a new premium product at the airline group level, rather than at the airline level. This same product is being installed on SWISS as well.
That's different than other airline groups, where there's not as much commonality between products (like Air France-KLM, IAG, etc.).
So don't you think the airline group (rather than the individual airline) deserves a bit more blame when these decisions are made on such a high level?
I'm with Ben on this one. The idea that the LH Group CEO is not wholly involved in the biggest strategic decision of the decade (bar acquiring ITA) is ridiculous. No airline in the world could develop a new concept across all cabins without a sign-off by the CEO.
It's not like the past 8 years we didn't blame everything on Trump and Biden.
Sphor is correctly to be blamed.
Its not unusual at all for major global ceo’s. It’s called executive protection. Staffed often by former military and law enforcement
Spohr isn't a "major global CEO" by any stretch. He's the Group CEO for a couple airlines, all of which have their own sub-CEO's. He earned 4,9 Mio Euro in 2022 including all bonuses. That's not a very big fish in terms of importance or threat potential. I say this "bodyguard" was planted for the article.
I’m almost positive Richard Anderson had pretty intense personal security when he was at NWA, but that could have been only during union negotiations.
Interesting. Ed Bastian actually has a remote body guard whose job it is to monitor what's said about the airline online and post rambling screeds of dubious accuracy in response to anything insufficiently deferential.
Tim Dunn?
You didn't really ask that.
Kindly don't awake him. Let him have good time.
I've run into United's CEO in a hotel with his family and he definitely did not have security
And I’ve talked with Kirby on an (America) airplane ;-) Seemed like a good guy. And Ben just gave him a shoutout
If I was the CEO of a large consumer facing business that required me to be in a confined space with said consumers, I’d have a bodyguard too!
KLM’s CEO Marjan Rintel worked a flight as uniformed crew. Meanwhile it’s true he seems completely out of touch. Perhaps he received threats we are unaware of. If a customer approached him for an amicable conversation would he ensure the security got between them and tell the customer to go away?
Germany does have climate cultist shills that have been going nuts for 5 years now. Some of them have even broken into airports and glued themselves to the runway, or attacked aircrafts, throwing buckets of orange paint at them.
Probably he is scared of running into one of those?
Germany has far more dangerous “anti-globalist” types than dangerous “greenies” nowadays. Both types may take issues with the boss of a major airline that represents something they may dislike a lot.