John E. “Ned” Walker

John E. “Ned” Walker (Houston, TX) is the Senior Vice President & Chief Communications Officer of Delta Air Lines. Walker joined Delta in November 2008 after retiring from Continental Airlines after a distinguished 21 year career in corporate communications.

In his current role he is responsible for strategy and coordination of all internal and external communications. He is currently focusing on consistent messaging among employees, shareholders, media and the public while Delta completes its merger with Northwest Airlines to become the world's largest airline.

In 200x, Fortune Magazine ranked Continental the Most Admired Global Airline. In 1996, Ned was named Employee Communications All-Star by Inside PR and was recognized for helping to transform Continental’s once authoritarian corporate culture into a more employee-friendly environment.

Walker began his aviation career with Frontier Horizon, a Frontier Airlines’ subsidiary. He had previously been a journalist with The Chicago Tribune-owned KWGN-TV in Denver.

He serves on the Advisory Council of the College of Communication at the University of Texas at Austin and was chairman of the visitor relations subcommittee for the Super Bowl XXXVIII Host Committee. He holds a bachelor’s degree in mass communications from the University of Colorado at Boulder.