Stephen M. Wolf (born in 1941) is an American

business executive A business executive is a person responsible for running an organization, although the exact nature of the role varies depending on the organization. Executives run companies or government agencies. They create plans to help their organizations gr ...

in the

aviation Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' include fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air aircraft such as h ...

sector. He has held leadership positions at various companies including, serving as chairman of R. R. Donnelley & Sons Company, from March 2004, and managing partner of Alpilles LLC since April 2003. He has also been associated with Lehman Brothers Merchant Banking, and later Trilantic Capital Partners since April 2009.

Personal life

Wolf is a

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

native who attended high school in

Oakland, California Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, California, Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major We ...

, and later earned his bachelor's degree from

San Francisco State University San Francisco State University (San Francisco State, SF State and SFSU) is a Public university, public research university in San Francisco, California, United States. It was established in 1899 as the San Francisco State Normal School and is ...

. In 1986, he married Delores, a former

American Airlines American Airlines, Inc. is a major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, within the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, and is the Largest airlines in the world, largest airline in the ...

executive."For UAL's Wolf, Regrets Over Departure Buyout is Near, but CEO Sees a Lost Opportunity"
/ref> While serving as chairman of

United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. is a Major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States headquartered in Chicago, Chicago, Illinois that operates an extensive domestic and international route network across the United States and six ...

, the couple resided in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

. In 2013, the couple purchased a 242 square meter (2,600 square feet) Moroccan-style, 2-bedroom condominium in the Dunster House complex at 360 S. Ocean Blvd. in

Palm Beach, Florida Palm Beach is an incorporated town in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. Located on a barrier island in east-central Palm Beach County, the town is separated from West Palm Beach, Florida, West Palm Beach and Lake Worth Beach, Florida, ...

."Ponton Sells Upscale Condo With Moroccan§ Décor"
/ref> Wolf has a collection of Jaguar automobiles."Steve Wolf's Soft Landing"
/ref> Since 1990, Wolf has donated over $19,000 to Republican political campaigns, including those of

John McCain John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American statesman and United States Navy, naval officer who represented the Arizona, state of Arizona in United States Congress, Congress for over 35 years, first as ...

, Thomas M. Davis, Sue Lowden, Lauch Faircloth, Linda Lingle, Josh Mandel, Lynn Morley Martin, Michael Castle, and

John Warner John William Warner III (February 18, 1927 – May 25, 2021) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the United States Secretary of the Navy from 1972 to 1974 and as a five-term United States Republican Party, Republican United Stat ...

."Stephen M. Wolf - political donations - Little Sis
/ref>

Career

In 1966, Wolf began his aviation career with

, where he advanced to the position of

vice president A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...

of the Western Division. In 1981, he joined

Pan American World Airways Pan American World Airways, originally founded as Pan American Airways and more commonly known as Pan Am, was an airline that was the principal and largest international air carrier and unofficial overseas flag carrier of the United States for ...

as a senior vice president. In 1982, he became

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

and

chief operating officer A chief operating officer (COO), also called chief operations officer, is an executive in charge of the daily operations of an organization (i.e. personnel, resources, and logistics). COOs are usually second-in-command immediately after the C ...

Continental Airlines Continental Airlines (simply known as Continental) was a major airline in the United States that operated from 1934 until it merged with United Airlines in 2012. It had ownership interests and brand partnerships with several carriers. Continen ...

. In 1984, he became president and CEO of

Republic Airlines (1979-1986) Republic Airlines was an airline in the United States that operated from 1979 until it merged with Northwest Airlines in 1986. Republic was formed by the merger of North Central Airlines and Southern Airways on July 1, 1979. Their headquarte ...

, serving in that role until 1986, when he led the airline's merger with

Northwest Airlines Northwest Airlines (often abbreviated as NWA) was a major airline in the United States that operated from 1926 until it Delta Air Lines–Northwest Airlines merger, merged with Delta Air Lines in 2010. The merger made Delta the largest airline ...

. He later served as chairman and CEO of Tiger International Inc. and its subsidiary, Flying Tiger Line. The company was later acquired by Federal Express. In 1987, Wolf left Flying Tiger to lead Allegis Corporation, the former parent company of United Airlines. Wolf served on the boards of directors for R. R. Donnelley & Sons Company,

Philip Morris International Philip Morris International Inc. (PMI) is a multinational tobacco company, with products sold in over 180 countries. Marlboro is PMI’s most recognized brand, but in the last quarter of 2023, Iqos generated the greatest revenue. Philip Mor ...

, and Chrysler Group, LLC. He is also an honorary trustee of the

Brookings Institution The Brookings Institution, often stylized as Brookings, is an American think tank that conducts research and education in the social sciences, primarily in economics (and tax policy), metropolitan policy, governance, foreign policy, global econo ...

. Since August 1994, Wolf has worked in various roles within the aviation industry. He was a senior advisor to Lazard Frères until its employees purchased the company. From 1987 to July 1994, he was chairman and chief executive officer of

UAL Corporation UAL Corporation is the former name of United Airlines Holdings, an airline holding company, incorporated in Delaware with headquarters in Chicago, Illinois. UAL held a 100 percent controlling interest in United Airlines, Inc., one of the worl ...

and United Airlines, Inc. Wolf served as the CEO of

US Airways US Airways was a major airline in the United States. It was originally founded in History of aviation in Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh as a mail delivery airline called All American Aviation, which soon became a commercial passenger airline. In 1953, it ...

from January 16, 1996, until his resignation on November 18, 1998. During this period, the airline changed its name from US Air to US Airways. The company also placed an order for 400 Airbus A320-series narrow-body aircraft, including 120 firm orders at the time of signing On November 27, 2001, Wolf succeeded Rakesh Gangwal as CEO of

, a position he had previously held before passing it to Gangwal three years earlier. By August 2002, US Airways had filed for

Chapter 11 bankruptcy Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code ( Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, w ...

and David N. Siegel was named president and chief executive.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wolf, Stephen M. 1941 births Living people American chief operating officers American airline chief executives San Francisco State University alumni 20th-century American businesspeople Date of birth missing (living people) Place of birth missing (living people)