IATA DG Walsh Leaves As He Arrived: Fighting

RIO DE JANEIRO—IATA director general Willie Walsh opened the association’s AGM with what may be his last major speech in that role, and he did it with his signature style—verbally jabbing hard at those who he sees as standing in the way of airline success and profitability.

Walsh addressed several current-issue themes in his speech at the AGM’s venue in Rio de Janeiro on June 7: the Iran war, sky-high jet fuel prices, the lack of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), the ongoing supply chain mess, aviation taxation and regulation, and more. But he saved his most pointed remarks for the oil industry that has essentially bailed out of its SAF production promises, the aircraft and engine manufacturers that have failed to deliver, air traffic management (ATM) organizations, and, of course, London Heathrow Airport.

“Airlines face higher fuel costs with fleets that are less efficient than planned. Why? Because the aerospace supply chain continues its failure to deliver aircraft and engines as promised,” Walsh said in his address. “The aircraft order backlog is over 18,000. And the average fleet age has reached a record 15.2 years. Moreover, being short by over 5,000 more fuel-efficient replacement aircraft that we had counted on means missed efficiency gains, not to mention higher lease rates and increased maintenance costs. In total, supply chain failures cost airlines at least $11 billion in 2025. Today’s higher fuel prices will only make that worse.”

Walsh then pointed out the difference between the impacts of those failures on manufacturers and on airlines.

“Deeply disappointed customers have not dented manufacturer finances. For example, most engine manufacturer profits were up double digits. I cannot share my reaction to this paradox in polite company, so I leave you to draw your own conclusions. But then again, when have you guys ever been polite? So, let me tell you what I think. My message to the engine OEMs is simple—stop gouging us and get back to making great engines that work and that last. Allowing these failures to extend into the next decade is totally unacceptable to the customers,” Walsh said.

He also took his usual stab at London Heathrow Airport, home hub for British Airways—where Walsh was CEO before heading the airline’s parent company, IAG—describing it as “the gift that keeps on giving,” although the “gift” is more a curse in Walsh’s eyes.

“Heathrow’s third runway plans align with an important opportunity to break from this perverse model,” Walsh said, an unusually calm assessment for him.

But maybe that’s because he had other targets, including European and US ATM systems. “Europe’s fragmented inefficiency continues. Decades of under-investment in the US system have left it best described as nostalgic—certainly not modern. More airspace is becoming entangled in conflicts which we manage safely, but with sub-optimal rigid route systems. And, overall, nationalistic thinking blocks progress on smarter and more flexible solutions. The high cost of fuel makes these frustrations insufferable. That’s before we even consider the hypocrisy of governments talking a good game on sustainability and competitiveness while dragging their feet on meaningful ATM reform,” Walsh said.

There was more, but Walsh also allowed time to acknowledge he would leave IATA to become CEO at Indian carrier IndiGo this summer—a job where he will face challenges aplenty, stabilizing the airline through a rocky period and dealing with Indian regulation.

But another hallmark of Walsh is that he is always optimistic.  “Aviation changes the lives of over 5 billion travelers annually by taking them where they need to be or by bringing them home,” he said. “While the forces of conflict and division seem to make our world more dangerous day by day, aviation makes the world a better place by bringing people together. We offer hope and enable freedom.”

Tellingly, there was no mention of his successor at IATA. With all the world’s aviation challenges, finding someone willing to take them on may be harder now than ever. Walsh will still be industry active, but his primary battle from the end of this summer will be, once more, for an airline in need of a fighter.