American Airlines has today announced the appointment of Devon May as the carrier’s new Chief Financial Officer. Mr. May, who is currently American’s SVP of Finance and Investor Relations will assume his new role on January 1st, 2023.
On Tuesday (December 13, 2022), American Airlines announced the appointment of Devon May as the carrier’s new Chief Financial Officer (CFO) effective January 1st, 2023. Mr. May, who is currently American’s Senior Vice President of Finance and Investor Relations, will report directly to the airline’s CEO Robert Isom. He succeeds American’s current CFO, Derek Kerr, who will remain at the airline as Vice Chair and President of American Eagle. Mr. Kerr will continue to lead American’s regional and Cargo teams and serve as a strategic advisor to the Group.
In Tuesday’s announcement, American Airlines’ CEO, Robert Isom, said,
“Derek Kerr is quite simply the best CFO in the history of the airline industry. He is a great friend and has been a trusted advisor throughout my career, and his 20-year stint as CFO of America West, US Airways and American is unparalleled. He was instrumental in bringing together American and US Airways and ensuring American remained on solid footing during the global pandemic. American is well-positioned because of Derek's leadership and stewardship, and he has spent years readying Devon for his new responsibilities.”
Also commenting on Derek Kerr’s tenure as the carrier’s CFO, American Airlines’ Chairman, Doug Parker added,
“I have had the privilege of calling Derek a friend and colleague for more than 30 years. He is truly one of a kind — an airline CFO who has served in the role for two decades and made certain his airline met every single one of its commitments over that time. Derek has played a key role in building American into the airline it is today, and his leadership was critical in helping us get through the challenges brought on by the pandemic. On behalf of the entire board of directors, I want to thank Derek for his tremendous contributions to our airline as CFO.”
Speaking on his service as American’s CFO, Derek Kerr added,
“It has been a tremendous honor to serve as CFO of American, US Airways and America West the past 20 years. I’m incredibly proud of what we accomplished over that time — particularly over the past three years during the pandemic as we faced a crisis unlike any our industry had ever seen. We have the best finance team in the industry, and given we are back to profitability and well on our way to reducing our debt levels, it’s the ideal time to make this transition. As we move forward, the Finance organization is in great hands with Devon.”
Devon May joined America West Airlines in 2002, and brings to his new role as American Airlines’ CFO 20 years of airline industry experience across finance, operations, network planning and alliances. In his current role at the company, May leads American’s financial planning & analysis, corporate development, and investor relations. Previously, he served as SVP of Finance and SVP of Network Strategy at American Eagle, where he led American’s regional operations, network planning and alliances. Devon May holds an MBA from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida, and a Bachelor of Management in Finance degree from the University of Lethbridge in Alberta, Canada.
Further commenting on the appointment of Devon May as the carrier’s new CFO, American’s CEO, Robert Isom, said,
“Devon is the perfect person to lead our finance organization going forward as we continue to focus on achieving sustained profitability and reducing debt. He is a world-class executive who has built a great team around him, and he has played a critical leadership role inside American for many years. This move follows a long-planned succession process, and the entire senior leadership team is looking forward to working alongside Devon even more closely in his new role.”
Also commenting on his upcoming role as American’s new CFO, Devon May said,
“I’m truly honored to be taking on the role of CFO at American. Derek has been a close friend and mentor to me for more than 20 years and our airline is set up well for the future because of his leadership. I look forward to leading our finance team as we build on the progress we have made on our return to sustained profitability and our debt reduction plan. The best is yet to come for American.”
American Airlines’ purpose is to “Care for People on Life’s Journey.” Shares in the American Airlines Group, Inc., trade on NASDAQ under the ticker symbol AAL and the company’s stock is included in the S&P 500.
Source: American Airlines