Airbnb Hires Aviation Industry Veteran to Lead New Transportation Division

Since the fall of 2016, when Airbnb launched its first product outside of homesharing, CEO Brian Chesky has hinted at the possibility of the company entering the transportation space with "Airbnb Flights." Ever since, numerous new reports have pondered exactly how Airbnb would delve into transportation. Would Airbnb build or buy an airline? Would it buy a booking engine or a metasearch platform? Today, it's still unclear exactly what Airbnb intends to do with transportation. But the $31 billion company has taken the step of hiring longtime aviation industry veteran Fred Reid to be its first-ever global head of transportation. In this new role, Reid, the former president of Delta Air Lines and the founding CEO of Virgin America, will be tasked with "building partnerships and services that make travel seamless while delivering the kind of people-to-people hospitality Airbnb is known for around the world." One thing Reid is unlikely to accomplish anytime soon is the developmen