United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby talks about the future from JFK to AI

NEWARK, N.J. — Scott Kirby says he doesn’t believe in revenge.

“Everyone thinks I think that, but no, I don’t,” he said united airlines CEO, who american airlines He was fired 10 years ago when he was president of the airline. “I compete aggressively.”

Shortly after American announced his resignation, United announced on August 29, 2016 that it had hired him as president. Today, Kirby runs the second most profitable airline in the United States. delta airlines. And his former employer, American Airlines, which is far behind a third of the 100-year-old major U.S. airline, is working to increase revenue through a number of upgrades, including the return of seat-back screens.

Last year, Mr. Kirby floated the idea of ​​a mega-merger with both Delta Air Lines and American Airlines, combining some of the world’s largest airlines. He had so far been rebuffed, and antitrust experts were skeptical of the possibility.

He’s thinking bigger than ever before, as the industry faces ever-increasing costs, limited airport infrastructure, and a population prepared to pay more to fly (and often sit in an expensive seat) to the next “IT” destination.

CNBC rode with Kirby earlier this month from Manhattan’s Midtown West Side to New Jersey’s Newark Liberty International Airport, United’s hub, where the 59-year-old executive laid out his vision for the airline before departing.

Kirby said he wants to expand United’s footprint at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport after the airline returned to the busy airport through a partnership with a former American Airlines partner. jet blue airlinesas early as next year.

“We’ve worked very hard to find a way to do that,” he said, adding that United could at some point acquire slots from airlines that don’t fly profitable routes from the airport.

He also wants to expand the airline’s international footprint even though United already reigns supreme among U.S. airlines when it comes to international flights, which are in high demand among American tourists. United Airlines is set to announce a slew of new international routes this week, an annual highlight for the airline that has previously added new dots on the map, including Ulaanbaatar in Mongolia and Bilbao in Spain.

United has touted its international expansion for years, saying its vast network serves to drive customer loyalty and sign-ups for its lucrative travel rewards credit cards. The announcement of that route is usually highly publicized.

Mr. Kirby has been an airline executive for 30 years and is the most outspoken airline CEO in the United States. His team knows this and has stopped telling him in advance what will be prepared in the next batch of routes for Instagram.

“They don’t tell me in advance anymore because they’re afraid of spilling the beans, and that’s understandable,” he says.

Delta Air Lines still holds the lead in terms of profits, but CEO Ed Bastian doesn’t want to cede ground to United Airlines. United is starting to expand its service to the Pacific, its home base.

“People say, ‘So when is it someone else’s turn?’ Well, I’m not going to make it anyone else’s turn,” Bastian told students at Columbia Business School in April 2024. “We always get a chance to prove it every day. … It doesn’t really matter what happened yesterday. All you can think about is today and tomorrow.”

It’s been 10 years since Kirby joined United. He joined American Airlines in August 2016 because he was fired from American Airlines while he was president and saw no path to ultimately becoming CEO.

United Airlines withdrew its securities filing shortly after American Airlines disclosed Kirby’s retirement and announced that he would become president of Chicago Airlines. On the same day, American Airlines promoted then-chief operating officer Robert Isom to president, Kirby’s previous role. Isom was named American’s next CEO in late 2021.

“I’m joking, but most people wait weeks or months before their next job. It took me 60 seconds,” Kirby said.

United promoted Kirby from president to CEO in May 2020 as the industry reeled from the worst crisis in history, the coronavirus.

The executive at the top of United Airlines and American Airlines traces its roots to America West and other airlines until a wave of mergers over the past two decades left four carriers with more than three-quarters of the nation’s air transportation capacity.

“One of the things I learned at American University is that there are limits to the changes you can make as a No. 2,” he said. “If you work too hard, you might get fired.”

When Kirby joined the airline in 2016, United was in the midst of upgrading its cabin, including top-of-the-line Polaris pod seats for long-haul business class. But his first job, he said, was to follow the red route with a highlighter to figure out what worked and what didn’t.

The company considered closing locations at Los Angeles International Airport and Washington Dulles International Airport in Virginia. Kirby said she has dismissed that idea and remains open to both.

Airports are important to United Airlines. LAX is one of the most important hub airports for airlines, but no airline manages this airport like other airlines. And last month, Kirby took a day flight from his son’s soccer camp in Brazil to meet with President Donald Trump and announce plans for a $22.5 billion Dulles renovation in the Oval Office.

Stock analysts and legal experts were highly skeptical of a merger between United Airlines and another major U.S. company.

As the Wall Street Journal first reported last month, Mr. Kirby approached Delta Air Lines but was turned down, according to people familiar with the matter. The people spoke about the talks on condition of anonymity. Delta Air Lines declined to comment. Delta President Peter Carter told CNBC at an industry conference in June that mergers and acquisitions are not in Delta’s future.

Meanwhile, American Airlines publicly rejected a merger proposal from United this spring.

“At the end of the day, we spend a lot of time considering things that could happen. We don’t spend a lot of time pursuing the impossible,” Isom said in an interview with CNBC in late June.

Kirby told CNBC that his position hasn’t changed and he has no interest in acquiring smaller airlines like JetBlue. “That’s still the case,” he said.

“Everything I say requires an active partner,” Kirby said.

Asked about antitrust concerns and possible pushback from state attorneys general, he said, “All the opposition…is based on the premise that the airline industry is a commodity.”

And Kirby said the industry has evolved since then, with Delta and United differentiating themselves on routes, in-flight amenities and other products.

He said United wants to grow in South America and the southeastern United States, but lacks locations where it makes sense to build new locations.

“These are two holes for United that are difficult to fix on their own,” Kirby said.

The best location to serve South America is Miami International Airport, he added. American Airlines accounted for more than 60% of passenger jets in fiscal year 2025, according to airport data.

Mergers aside, Kirby said artificial intelligence tools would make travel easier and more reliable for both employees and customers, but that’s a tall order for airlines that are susceptible to daily surprises from weather, airport constraints and other mechanical issues.

He wants to express the delay to his customers in clear English.

“I will not make any excuses because I firmly believe that there are no excuses,” he said.

Still, United ranked second only to Delta Air Lines in the first half of this year. alaska airlinesThe airline recently merged with Hawaiian Airlines to offer on-time arrival service, according to the Department of Transportation.

Kirby said he was focused on the long-term future of the airline, saying external factors and obvious crises always pose challenges to the industry.

“Our employees often ask, ‘What keeps you up at night?’ and I say, ‘Nothing,'” he says. “My job is to build a company so that you don’t have to spend sleepless nights thinking about your job.”

He said his goal is to never be furloughed at an airline again.

Asked if he would ever retire, Kirby said, “I want to know when I will retire and do it gracefully, making a great transition with great people.”