ATLANTA, Oct. 11, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The Board of
Directors of Delta Air Lines (NYSE: DAL) announced today that
Richard H. Anderson has elected to
retire as executive chairman effective this date. Francis S.
"Frank" Blake, who has been lead director since May 2016, will succeed Anderson as Delta's
non-executive chairman. Blake, the former Chairman and CEO of The
Home Depot, joined Delta's board in July
2014.
Anderson served on Delta's board for nearly a decade, becoming a
director in April 2007 when the
airline emerged from bankruptcy. He was appointed Delta's CEO in
August 2007, and was elevated to
executive chairman in May 2016 as he
retired as CEO.
"Under Richard's leadership, Delta people established themselves
as leaders in reliability, customer service and financial
performance," Blake said. "His years of service to Delta
established a legacy of unmatched dedication to our customers,
employees, investors and the communities we serve. He is one of the
great leaders in global aviation, and we wish him well."
Delta Air Lines serves nearly 180 million customers each year.
In 2016, Delta was named to Fortune's top 50 Most Admired Companies
in addition to being named the most admired airline for the fifth
time in six years. Additionally, Delta has ranked No.1 in the
Business Travel News Annual Airline survey for an unprecedented
five consecutive years. With an industry-leading global network,
Delta and the Delta Connection carriers offer service to 319
destinations in 57 countries on six continents. Headquartered in
Atlanta, Delta employs more than
80,000 employees worldwide and operates a mainline fleet of more
than 800 aircraft. The airline is a founding member of the SkyTeam
global alliance and participates in the industry's leading
transatlantic joint venture with Air France-KLM and Alitalia
as well as a joint venture with Virgin Atlantic. Including its
worldwide alliance partners, Delta offers customers more than
15,000 daily flights, with key hubs and markets including
Amsterdam, Atlanta, Boston, Detroit, Los Angeles, Minneapolis/St.
Paul, New York-JFK and LaGuardia, London-Heathrow, Paris-Charles de
Gaulle, Salt Lake City, Seattle and Tokyo-Narita. Delta has
invested billions of dollars in airport facilities, global products
and services, and technology to enhance the customer experience in
the air and on the ground. Additional information is available on
the Delta News Hub, as well as delta.com, Twitter @DeltaNewsHub,
Google.com/+Delta, and Facebook.com/delta.
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SOURCE Delta Air Lines