Tonight’s heartwarming news comes via an unexpected avenue: a multi-million dollar corporation, its CEO, and a 10-year-old boy.
Alex Jacquot, a 10-year-old (who wants you to take him seriously) wrote an extremely cute letter to Alan Joyce, the CEO of Qantas, earnestly asking him for advice in setting up Alex’s new airline, Oceania Express.
The letter reads:
Dear Mr Alan Joyce AO,
I’m Alex Jacquot, a 10 year old boy (please take me seriously) and I want to start an airline. I have already started some stuff like what type of planes I’ll need, flight numbers, catering and more. I’m the CEO of the airline, which by the way is called Oceania Express. I’ve also hired a CFO, a Head of IT, a Head of Maintenance, a Head of On Board Services and a Head of Legal as well, along with my friend Wolf (Vice-CEO) we are both co-founders.
I wanted to write to you because I wanted to ask you three things. Number one: I like working on my airline. Seeing as it is the school holidays, I have more time to work. But I don’t have anything to do (that I can think of). Do you have any ideas of what I can do? Seeing as you are the CEO of QANTAS, I thought I’d ask you.
Number two: Do you have any tips on starting an airline? I’d be very grateful to know what you’d have to say.
Number 3: I’m thinking about, as you are, about an A350 for Sydney/Melbourne to London flights. Seeing as it is a 25 hour flight, we are having a lot of trouble thinking about sleep. Do you have any advice?
Hope to hear from you soon!
Yours sincerely,
Alex Jacquot, CEO and Co-Founder of Oceania Express.
(Let us take just one quick moment to comment Alex on his excellent spelling and letter-writing skills, which frankly put many of us to shame.)
If the letter itself wasn’t already maxing out your adorableness quota for the day, cop this: Joyce wrote Alex back, not only responding to his questions but inviting him to a meeting to discuss Qantas’s Project Sunrise, their plan to fly passengers non-stop between Australia and London.
“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. At this meeting,” Joyce wrote, “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).“
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
Corporate Australia taking our young people seriously! I love it! Investing in the future….Can’t wait to book a ticket with Oceania Express….🙂 https://t.co/zJ8YBIyaLd
— Jane Artup (@Janeartup) March 11, 2019
Hats off to Alan Joyce & @Qantas What an opportunity for Alex and all those Oceania Airline employees. I hope we see Oceania Airlines in the skies one day! #dreambig #dreamscancometrue #ifyoucandreamityoucandoit #kidpower https://t.co/Y0UektKGOa
— Justin Hill (@jedjnr) March 11, 2019
It goes against all my pinko breeding to applaud the CEO of a very successful company, but when a guy takes time out of his day to acknowledge, take seriously and respond to a kid with a (very well thought-out) dream, I must applaud. Hell yeah, Alan Joyce and Alex Jacquot. What a legendary team.
