Willie Walsh joined British Airways as chief executive officer (CEO) designate on May 3, 2005 and assumed full CEO responsibilities on October 1 after the retirement of Sir Rod Eddington.

Prior to joining British Airways, Willie was CEO at Aer Lingus, a position he was appointed to in the aftermath of 9/11.  Faced with bankruptcy and heavy losses, Willie radically restructured the airline and this culminated in it posting an €107 million profit in 2004, making Aer Lingus the most profitable state-owned airline in the western world.

Born in 1961 in Dublin, Willie joined Aer Lingus in 1979 as a cadet pilot and worked his way through the ranks to become a captain in 1990. He began his move to management in 1989 where he fulfilled various roles in the flight operations department.  He completed a Master of Science in Management and Business Administration at Dublin’s Trinity College in 1992.

His managerial skills led him to being appointed CEO of Futura, Aer Lingus’ Spanish charter airline in 1998, where he restructured the business and settled a damaging industrial relations dispute.  He returned to Dublin with Aer Lingus in 2000 where he took up the role of chief operating officer and was subsequently appointed as CEO in October 2001.

Willie is married with one daughter.  He enjoys all sports especially golf and soccer.