Fred Reid Joins Airbnb as Global Head of Transportation

Fred Reid has joined Airbnb as Global Head of Transportation.

A global aviation expert with more than three decades of experience, Fred joins Airbnb from his role as President of Cora Aircraft Program, a division of Kitty Hawk, where he oversaw the development of one of the most advanced autonomous electric vertical takeoff and landing aircrafts in the world.

Prior to that, he was President of Flexjet, an independent operating unit of Bombardier.

Fred was also the founding Chief Executive Officer of Virgin America, served as President of Delta Airlines, and helped format the SkyTeam airline alliance. He was named President and Chief Operating Officer of Lufthansa German Airlines in 1996 and was a co-architect of Star Alliance.

“There was a time when getting on a plane was a magical trip of its own, but over the years, how you get to where you're going has become an experience we endure, not enjoy. We believe that needs to change,” said Airbnb Co-Founder, CEO and Head of Community, Brian Chesky. “We couldn't ask for anyone better to take on this monumental task than Fred, and I’m honored that he’s agreed to work with us.”

Airbnb has forecast that there will have been over 500 million guest arrivals in Airbnb listings by the end of the first quarter of 2019.

“We’re going to explore a broad range of ideas and partnerships that can make transportation better. We haven’t settled on exactly what those will look like,” added Chesky. “I’m not interested in building our own airline or creating just another place on the internet where you can buy a plane ticket, but there is a tremendous opportunity to improve the transportation experience for everyone.”

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