Delta elevates “be nice, be standard, be professional” through a pilot’s long view from the cockpit

On a busy day at Los Angeles International Airport, Delta First Officer Jeannine Smith does something that looks small, but is central to how the airline frames service: she walks the jetway, says hello, and makes time for passengers who are anxious about connections or flying. In a profile released by Delta’s internal news site, Smith links that habit to a simple rule displayed in the LAX “bag room”: “be nice, be standard, be professional.”

The centerpiece of Delta’s latest installment in its “Delta Difference” series is a career path that mixes formal training, operational longevity, and an emphasis on day-to-day conduct. Smith is described as a long-tenured pilot, including 35 years at Delta, and as the kind of colleague who builds rapport early, including by introducing herself and learning crew members’ names.

Delta says Smith’s interest in aviation started long before she became a pilot. As the youngest of four girls, she grew up in an environment where air shows were a family tradition. She recounted getting what she called the “primo spot” perched atop her father’s shoulders, watching stunt aircraft. That early fascination later evolved into a career that spans military and commercial aviation.

The profile places Smith’s early professional experience in the U.S. Air Force. Delta says she flew the Lockheed C-141 Starlifter during Operation Desert Storm. After that period, she joined Delta as a second officer on the Boeing 727 in 1991, beginning a long run that Delta describes as taking her across multiple aircraft types.

Over the course of her career at Delta, Smith has flown the 737 and 777, and the profile highlights her current seat on the Airbus A350. Delta uses her comment about her “A350” experience to underscore how pilots adapt to new platforms, framing the aircraft transition as part of the airline’s broader culture of continuous professionalism rather than a one-time milestone.

In the interview, Smith describes how she thinks about customer experience in operational terms. She says her approach includes stepping out to interact with passengers directly, giving travelers a chance to ask questions, and helping reduce stress for those worried about the pace of travel. She also ties readiness to everyday discipline, saying the “easy, short answer” to the job’s demands is to “show up,” know what to do, and then follow through while staying respectful.

The profile also includes a personal memory that Delta portrays as defining for Smith after more than three decades. Delta says that when she was a second officer, the flight carried the remains of a veteran, escorted by his best friend. Smith said she learned he was on board, spoke with the escort, and asked the captain if she could make a public address. Delta describes how she asked everyone to turn off televisions and music, a moment she frames as appreciation for service members even though it initially made other crew members wonder if something was wrong with the airplane.

Delta says that when Smith joined the airline, she was part of a small group of women pilots. She recalled that on her first day at Delta there were 32 women in the room and that, because of seniority and seating, she was assigned the back right seat. She said a man entering the room told her that she was “Number 42,” and she was told she was the 42nd female pilot ever hired by Delta. Delta uses this detail to illustrate the airline’s progress and the personal context of working in a historically male-dominated cockpit environment.

Beyond her own flight experience, Smith emphasizes teamwork inside the cockpit and between pilots and cabin crew. She says rapport starts with introducing herself and learning names, and she praises Delta flight attendants as hardworking and empathetic. The profile suggests that for Smith, professionalism is not just about procedures, it is also about how colleagues communicate, especially during busy schedules and potentially stressful situations for passengers.

The interview ends with a lighter personal note, with Smith naming Sydney, Australia as her favorite travel destination and saying she likes flying Delta’s South-Pacific routes. Still, the overall narrative is less about geography and more about how standards are transmitted through habits: a visible reminder in a work area, a routine conversation with passengers, and a long career that moves from military logistics to commercial flying while keeping the same tone.

Delta does not provide granular details about operational performance, training outcomes, or workforce metrics in this piece. The story is written as a people profile, so readers should treat the emphasis on culture and conduct as qualitative rather than as evidence of specific safety or customer metrics. It also does not quantify the scope of the pilot outreach described, such as how frequently Smith performs jetway greetings on her schedule or whether similar practices are formally encouraged across the fleet.

Looking ahead, Delta’s next challenge is the same one facing airlines broadly: sustaining a consistent passenger experience at scale while managing costs and crew availability. Profiles like this announcement where the company wants employees to focus, particularly on the intersection of safety discipline (“be standard”) and customer demeanor (“be nice”). For the public, the most practical question is whether that culture remains visible during peak travel periods, schedule disruptions, and aircraft transitions, when day-to-day conduct can become hardest to maintain.