David Neeleman

David Neeleman founded JetBlue, a low cost airline in February, 1999; under the name "NewAir." It was only one of the few U.S. airlines that made a profit during the sharp downturn in airline travel following the attacks in September 11, 2001.

In October 2005, JetBlue announced that its quarterly profit had plunged from $8.1 million to $2.7 million largely due to rising fuel costs. Operational issues, fuel prices, low fares and JetBlue's hallmark, were bringing its financial performance down. In February 2006, JetBlue announced its first ever quarterly loss. For 4th quarter 2005, the airline lost $42.4 million, enough to make them unprofitable for the entire year of 2005. The loss was the airline's first since going public in 2002. JetBlue also reported a loss in the 1st quarter 2006.

In 2007, Jet Blue’s David Neeleman was pushed out of the top spot by the company he had founded eight years prior.

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