Gay Qantas CEO responds in cutest way to 10 year old’s letter
Alan Joyce invited the boy for a meeting at Qantas. (Vince Caligiuri/Getty and Qantas/Twitter)
Gay Qantas CEO Alan Joyce has invited a 10 year old for a meeting after the boy sent him a handwritten letter asking for advice.
The boy, called Alex Jacquot, urged Joyce to “please take me seriously” before explaining that he wanted to start an airline called Oceania Express and needed tips on how to get his company off the ground.
He asked the Australian CEO for general advice before saying that like Qantas, he was thinking of acquiring “an A350 for Sydney/Melbourne to London flights.”
Our competitors don’t normally ask us for advice, but when an airline leader reached out, we couldn’t ignore it.
Naturally, there was only one way to respond: CEO to CEO. pic.twitter.com/JTFpzn5a6Y
— Qantas (@Qantas) March 11, 2019
“Seeing as it is a 25-hour flight, we are having a lot of trouble thinking about sleep. Do you have any advice?” he asked.
Gay Qantas CEO Alan Joyce replies with heartwarming letter
Joyce responded to the boy with a letter which has gone viral since Qantas posted it on Twitter on Monday (March 11), attracting more than 26,000 retweets and likes.
In the heartwarming message, sent on February 19, the CEO said: “Thank you for letting me know about your new airline. I had heard some rumours of another entrant in the market, so I appreciate you taking the time to write.
“First, I should say that I’m not typically in the business of giving advice to my competitors. Your newly-appointed Head of Legal might have something to say about that, too.
“I too was once a young boy who was so curious about flight and all its possibilities.”
— Gay Qantas CEO Alan Joyce
“But I’m going to make an exception on this occasion, because I too was once a young boy who was so curious about flight and all its possibilities.”
Joyce told Alex that he too was “grappling” with the issue of sleep on long-haul flights between Australia and London, which Qantas has named Project Sunrise.
The CEO explained: “We want to think up as many ideas as possible to make the journey more comfortable for all,” before asking whether the 10 year old would like to join this process.
Qantas CEO Alan Joyce campaigned for Australia to legalise same-sex marriage in 2017. (Cole Bennetts/Getty)
“I would like to invite you to a Project Sunrise meeting between myself, as the CEO of Australia’s oldest airline, and you, as the CEO of Australia’s newest airline,” wrote Joyce.
“At this meeting we can compare notes on what it’s like to run an airline. And I’d like to offer you a tour of our Operations Centre (where we keep an eye on every Qantas flight, wherever they are in the world).”
People praise gay Qantas CEO Alan Joyce for letter
Praise has flooded in for Joyce since the letters were posted on Twitter.
One person tweeted: “As a former Qantas employee, I could not be more proud than I am right now to be affiliated with a company (that I will always feel part of). Well done, Alan.”
Another said: “This is so beautiful and heartwarming. Thank you to @Qantas CEO for taking the time and reply to the young man and treat him with respect.”
A different user commented: “Alan, you not only took him ‘seriously’ you are helping young Alex transforming into future CEO. Kudos to you, take a bow!”
