United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby extended an olive branch to President-Elect Trump, congratulating him on his “historic victory” and wishing him success. Kirby also pledged support for the Administration in helping to use the federal government to promote economic growth.
United Airlines CEO Sends Letter To President-Elect Trump
Here’s the letter in full:
November 6, 2024
President Donald Trump & Vice President-elect JD Vance
Office of the Presidential Transition
1100 S Ocean Blvd. Palm Beach, FL 33480Dear President Trump and Vice President-elect Vance:
On behalf of United Airlines, I extend my congratulations to you on your historic victory. I wish you and your incoming Administration success in addressing our nation’s vital needs.
Over the course of the campaign, you have expressed optimism towards the next chapter of our American story. We could not agree more. United is a proud American company. As the largest airline in the world, we fly to all corners of the globe and represent the United States everywhere we fly. Our dynamic workforce of over 100,000 is made up of people from all 50 states and all walks of life. We provide lasting careers with industry leading wages and benefits for people and families across the economic spectrum. Our extensive network is not just good for United and our customers – our presence brings new economic growth and career opportunities to communities large and small, all across America.
United’s optimism for the future is reflected in our continued investments in the American economy and infrastructure. Since 2021, we have invested more than $32 billion back into our business, including the largest aircraft order in commercial aviation history. And more is on the way. We are creating the biggest, best and most innovative airline ever, and as such, a powerful engine of economic growth and job creation across the U.S. economy. I look forward to participating in this journey with you and your Administration.
As your focus turns to policies and personnel, I ask you to consider the role the federal government plays in realizing this vision for economic growth. For example, urgent improvements to the nation’s air traffic control infrastructure (including investments in people, facilities and technology) are central to enabling, instead of hindering, economic growth and customer service delivery. We at United stand ready to help you and your team achieve this success.
In closing, I was inspired by the promise of America’s greatness after spending time recently with the cadets at my alma mater, the United States Air Force Academy. For me, these brave young men and women serve as a living example that the United States is the greatest country in history. With that front of mind, I look forward to working with you and your team.
Sincerely,
Scott
The heart of this letter is trying to warm up to Trump so that he is more open to supporting upgrades and other improvements to the nation’s air traffic control (ATC) infrastructure. Updated technology, new facilities, and more people are needed to avoid the sort of self-induced slowdowns that snarl air traffic in busy corridors and disrupt airline operations. United has an acute AT problem at Newark Liberty International Airport, one of its fortress hubs.
Trump’s strong victory suggests a mandate and it is not surprising that Kirby wants to capture the moment to advance his own agenda. In this case, though, the agenda of Kirby aligns with the best interests of other airlines and consumers: updating our air traffic control infrastructure is a vital need that I too hope the incoming administration will not overlook.
What are your thoughts on Kirby’s letter to Trump and Vance?
I guess he knows where his bread is buttered. But I wonder who he really voted for.
His mindless and insincere letter , written by PR , discloses his obvious candidate of choice . Camel-a , the snob without a brain .
Like he had another choice.
@Santastico … +1 . Exactly . The “choice” of Camel-a was a “choice” for vacuity .
Perhaps that’s the point. I’m interested to see though what he wrote to Biden in 2020. Did he have to because it’s Trump and he is vengeful? Or is this a standard for every CEO no matter who wins. I’m genuinely curious.
He did pen a simliar letter to Biden:
https://liveandletsfly.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/United-Airlines-Congratulatory-Letter-.pdf
Thanks. I will let others read the body of the two and post their thoughts as to the differences.
Another poorly worded attempt , with the stilted “we could not agree more” , instead of the simple “we agree” .
Those who use useless words , to misstate , are PR writers .
I miss the America that says “I disagree with your choice, let’s have a beer.”
Typical phony PR letter . It is always amusing to see the stilted “We could not agree more” , rather than the simple “We agree” .
Let’s face it there are very few CEO’s in the world who will espouse an opinion BEFORE an election. I don’t really care for Musk but at least he had the cajones to stand up when it mattered.
Musk’s headquarters and residence famously left California because of the poor politicians and their policies . It was no surprise that he backed Trump .
My surprise was his $1 mil. each day giveaway to generate interest , but there was no surprise that the media did not report that unusual giveaway .
The media was in the tank for Camel-a , so no one trusted the media . Now the media has a well-deserved reputation for intellectual self-delusion .
I agree with you.. I knew the leftos on here would be not nice… Antwerp you are wrong….
Historic? Historically calamitous. Heaven help us as we’re going to need it.
Georgtown University has healing spaces with milk, cookies, and Lego to play with (for real) if you are in the DC area. Sounds like you could use it.
I mean cookies, milk, and legos sounds like a nice way to spend a quiet afternoon. Why the hell not?
Yesterday was such a lovely day in DC to be out and about in Georgetown. Milk does the body good. Cookies are usually considered yummy. And LEGOs are good for creativity and focus development. All of those things will become a lot more expensive when the country gets hit by another wave of Trumpflation from Trump’s promised policies.
Time to bend the knee and kiss-up to the ego of the fragile ego conman elected to be our 47th President. Not for me.
I’m enjoying your meltdowns btw
You are so funny as you clearly have no clue about what a meltdown is. There is no meltdown on my side of the screen. I have been expecting Trump to win since even well before Biden dropped out. And I am mercenary in taking advantage of opportunities whether a person in a position of privilege is closer to a scumbag, closer to a decent person or anywhere in between. And I am very comfortable with countries getting what they deserve from the leaders for whom the people vote for. But it won’t stop me from recognizing flawed characters and flawed actions for what they are in perspective consistent with my values.
hehe
@GUW, It’s real. Not sure why you lack acceptance. While disappointing to me, I try to face the truth and get on with life. It one day will get better . always the optimist. ; )
A response to your mischaracterizarion of me is to be found with my reply to Jan.
Alright, but I do worry about you.
To generate a positive return for real purpose, I suggest that you should worry about yourself and the persons for whom you have responsibilities or who had you as an obligation in their life. I am none of those kind of individuals for you; meanwhile the people who are those kind of persons for me have no such worry about me, and the ones next to me are laughing at the mention of the worry for me.
AWWWWWW suck it up loser.
No, that’s for you.
I am the kind of person who kisses up to no one and bends for no one. If it costs me, it won’t cost me my values and I am perfectly fine with that.
Sure man whatever, Trump is still President Elect, you’re still a loser, and I’m still laughing at you.
Chi being Trump’s Chick, how predictable.
Stephen Miller said they are going to denaturalize foreigners and kick them out.
See ya!
That goes for you too Billy Bob. You’re stuck with Trump again for for years and there’s nothing you can do about it LOL.
I am laughing all the way to the proverbial bank with the financial wins already from this week. As I said, I am mercenary when it comes to these kind of things. And about bending the knee for Trump or anyone? Not for me. I don’t get intimidated because my values don’t change and are worth more than disrespecting myself. I proudly stick to my guns; and I do so even more so when encountering bullies whose thin skin fails to hide their many insecurities. Such clowns should go pound sand. Kissing up to and bending to the will of petty-minded bullies is for losers who lack confidence and self-respect when self-confidence and self-respect are most needed.
His mention (reminder? ) of the ATC improvements is vital after so many recent issues.
That’s not for Trump. If Kirby wants to kiss the ring there will be plenty of others he can do that to later when doing their bidding for ATC improvements. And, let’s be clear, Trump seems to care less and is the last person to appeal to. From my seat it seems his concern for aviation is only his big beautiful Air Force One and repainting it.
Agree with most of your points as to what is important to Trump. My thought on why Kirby mentioned the ATC ( and my concerns ) relate to when the vengeful cheese paring begins the ATC might be spared.
I think MAGA will have far more to worry about than ATC. When Trump starts imposing regulations that circumvent states rights and encroach on protected values within a particular region, well, all hell will break loose. Walz, in his speech tonight, gave that warning about Minnesota. He said clearly that if the Government tries to impose its agenda on Minnesota then, “we will fight.” Imagine if they impose federal abortion bans on California? The 5th largest economy in the world? It will be an all out war. The civil war does not start with election denial. It starts with MAGA imposing its agenda on regions that are vehemently opposed. Yes, many “blue” states have large red areas. That’s how the battle will form within. And ATC will be the least of anyone’s concerns.
His central point on ATC infrastructure upgrades for economic growth is not unique to United. Therefore it should have been made by their trade association, Airlines for America, or privately by their lobbyists. This just makes him look like a suck up. Has the hallmarks of a rogue decision OR bad communications/government affairs counsel.
I am asking sincerely, did he send a letter to Joe Biden when he won in 2020? What did that letter say if he did? I would love to compare the context.
I stopped flying United 3 years ago. I certainly won’t be now, even on my one way flight out of this ludicrous, laughable nation.
Just curious, but to which country are you moving?
I have doubled down on America for a quick financial return between the strong Biden economic tailwind and the supercharge I expect to come from Trump before the burn from Trump hits the country hard.
And yes, I am an American who’s proud to turn my back on my country and leave it for good.
Allow us to assist you in packing…Hell I’ll start a gofundme to help you pay your citizenship renunciation fee…
Or maybe, and bear with me here, maybe you can take a step back and realize that this country has its problems, but nearly all of us still want to live here, work here, and respect each other here…in spite of what the media and your emotional thinking might tell you.
First, hilarious how the CEO is using thinly veiled “Trump speak” to try to level with him. “Biggest and best!” Maybe that’s what we’ll need for anyone to catch his ear, god I hope it doesn’t have long-term ramifications for the English language.
Second, on a more serious note, I think back to the articles about the climate change and sustainability report from last month. A lot of commenters who are more knowledgable about aviation than me emphasized the fuel waste as a result of poor ATC which makes a lot of sense. As someone who cares about the environment, sounds like this kind of alignment between environmental and business interests will be the way to make any progress over the next 4 years. At the same time it emphasizes how sustainability is just practical business sense, as long as we don’t let Trump realize he’s unknowingly being an eco-warrior!
You must be new here. Kirby has, in the last 3 years, ALWAYS been about being “the biggest and best airline in the solar system” with the “safest systems in the world” and has always overinflated UA’s status amongst the airline hierarchy. He would have penned the same thing had Harris won. (And on that note, I would not expect Kirby bragging about being the most joyful airline either, had she won.)
I was going to go over the superlatives, but then I found leftover Halloween candy.
Given Matthew’s comment above with the link to his letter to Biden in 2020 it seems that it is a general approach that is structured slightly to the particular winner. CEO’s gonna CEO. He’s an ass kisser to whoever has power. What else is to be expected? I would be more concerned if there was never a letter to Biden in 2020. In fact, both letters are carefully constructed and balanced while essentially the same.
As for Bezos and Musk? Hmm, now that is political manipulation not just to Trump but the entire country. $64B in wealth was generated for the top 10 billionaires on the first day Trump is elected. Meanwhile, the majority of MAGA followers are now wondering, “Will Elon still give us a million dollar raffle?”
Bezos blocks the WaPo from an endorsement and gains $7B the next day. Musk does his Musk thing and gains $20B. I’m all for wealth, but the math is there as to incentives to their support. In this case I think Kirby walked the line pretty carefully.
What a shame that we’ve allowed our government so much involvement in our daily lives that elections such as this carry such big consequences.
I for one can’t wait to call ICE on my trump supporting undocumented coworker, and anyone else I dont feel belongs here.
Adios amigos!
The joke with some DHS types was that the mass deportation hotline will be staffed with work-from-home illegal immigrants working under Americans IDs/SSNs getting bombarded by calls saying the annoying neighbors are actually illegal immigrants hiding behind Trump-Vance signs at home and on the cars.
@GU … You are right on the money about a future recession , and it will hurt . And you were also right on the money about the obvious electability of Trump .
But Trump will have a road to get many illegal aliens to leave : he did leave some holes in his wall for easy egress .
What a suck up!!
LOL what a POS.
Message to weak, soft soy boys like GU Wonder. Dad is home, and he is pissed.
No more bullsh!t. No more nonsense. Do your homework. The curfew is real.
America is back. Common sense prevails. Freedom is real. Socialism is dead.
Hi chick(en). You would soil through your pants if you had to follow me everywhere by yourself. But if it makes you happy, keep your mouth running like its 1984 while you have weird “daddy” fantasies.
Kirby’s words would have been identical had Biden or Harris won.