On Friday, October 7, the college welcomed Tom Doxey, president of Breeze Airways as the next industry professional in the Industry Insights Speaker Series led by the Management Department. Doxey is an airline industry veteran with more than a decade of experience in the field. Prior to becoming president of Breeze Airways, Doxey served as senior vice president of technical operations at United Airlines, having also worked for Allegiant Air and U.S. Airways.  

Doxey’s presentation focused on the history of Breeze Airways and the operations of the company. The founder of Breeze Airways, David Neeleman, had previously founded four other airlines including JetBlue. Breeze Airways was born during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and featured highly desirable networks of nonstop flights between underserved markets. Breeze Airways primarily focuses on smaller airports to make it more convenient and affordable for passengers as opposed to larger airports that are more expensive and crowded. In his presentation, Doxey mentioned that choosing Breeze Airways means a shorter driving time to the airport, shorter security lines and cheaper parking. In addition, Breeze Airways allows families to sit together for free and has no change or cancel fees. 

Capitalizing on underserved markets was the foundation for Breeze Airways’ business model which saw a 396 percent growth in weekly departures during its inaugural year of operation. In July 2022, Travel + Leisure magazine named Breeze Airways the second-best domestic airline. Doxey believes Breeze Airways is built to succeed in a post-pandemic world by merging technology and kindness. The presentation ended highlighting future career opportunities with Breeze Airways.  

Students and faculty had the opportunity to ask Doxey numerous questions regarding career opportunities for pilots, expansion in Breeze Airways, evolution of jet engines and strategies to mitigate jet noise.  

Our next speaker for the Industry Insights Series will be on October 21, featuring Hon. Christopher Hart.