WHEN: Today, Wednesday, April 9, 2025
WHERE: CNBC’s “Squawk Box”
Following are excerpts from the unofficial transcript of a CNBC interview with Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” (M-F, 6AM-9AM ET) today, Wednesday, April 9. Following is video from the interview on CNBC.com: https://www.cnbc.com/video/2025/04/09/delta-air-lines-ceo-ed-bastian-were-acting-as-if-were-going-into-a-recession.html.
All references must be sourced to CNBC.
BASTIAN ON GUIDANCE
WHAT WE FACED DURING THE FIRST QUARTER WAS A HECK OF A LOT OF TURBULENCE. IT WAS NOT JUST, YOU KNOW, THE ECONOMIC UNCERTAINTIES THAT WE TALK A LOT ABOUT WITH GLOBAL TRADE. WE HAD A REALLY TOUGH WEATHER MONTH IN JANUARY BOTH IN THE SOUTHEAST AND THE WEST COAST AND WE HAD IMPACT FROM THE HIGH PROFILE AIRCRAFT INCIDENTS AS WELL AS THE GLOBAL UNCERTAINTIES THAT WE’RE ALL TALKING ABOUT.
BASTIAN ON PROFITS BEING IN LINE
WE CAME IN WITH PROFITS IN LINE WITH WHERE WE WERE A YEAR AGO. I KNOW IT’S NOT THE GROWTH WE TALKED ABOUT BUT STILL IN LINE. ABOUT $400 MILLION DOLALRS OF PROFITS, 1.3 BILLION OF FREE CASH IN A TOUGH QUARTER . AS YOU KNOW, THE FIRST QUARTER IS ALWAYS OUR MOST DIFFICULT QUARTER WITH THE TURBULENCE WE FACED.
BASTIAN ON TRADE WARS
IT IS PRINCIPALLY IN THE DOMESTIC MARKETPLACE, PRINCIPALLY AMONGST OUR MOST PRICE SENSITIVE CONSUMERS AND IT’S ALSO ON AN OFFPEAK PERIOD. SO, WE FIND THE DAYS OF WEEK ARE WEAKER IN TERMS OF THE TUESDAY, WEDNESDAY, SATURDAY, VERSUS MORE TYPICAL BUSINESS PATTERNS. WE ALSO SEE CORPORATES THAT STARTED THE YEAR OUT GROWING 10%, HAVE STALLED
BASTIAN ON TRADE AND UNCERTAINTY
PERSONALLY, AND AT DELTA WE UNDERSTAND THAT TRADE IS A NORMAL THING AND YOU NEED TO GO THROUGH IT. IN FACT, THE FIRST TRUMP ADMINISTRATION WE WORKED VERY CLOSELY WITH THE ADMINISTRATION BECAUSE WE WERE HAVING BIG ISSUES WITH THE MIDDLE EASTERN CARRIERS AND THEY WERE QUITE HELPFUL. BUT WE DID IT OVER TIME. LONG SET OF CONVERSATIONS, IT WAS MORE STRATEGIC. TRYING TO DO IT ALL AT THE SAME TIME HAS CREATED CHAOS IN TERMS OF BEING ABLE TO MAKE PLANS.
