DAVID NEELEMAN

David Neeleman is the rarest of entrepreneurs, a man who has created and launched four successful, independent airlines, including the USA’s JetBlue and Canada’s WestJet. Brazil’s Azul, less than four years old, has already boarded almost twenty million customers.

Born in Brazil while his father was Reuter’s Sao Paulo Bureau Chief, David relishes the dream before him to make flying cheaper and easier for Brazilians, giving access to air travel for many who have never experienced the opportunity before.

David’s career began in 1984 when he co-founded a low-fare carrier called Morris Air with June Morris, the owner of Salt Lake City-based travel agency Morris Travel, implementing the industry’s first electronic ticketing system and pioneering a home reservation system where calls are handled by reservationists working from their homes. Prior to Azul, David founded JetBlue Airways in New York and spent a decade as CEO and later Chairman. David is married to Vicki, and they have nine children.