Fred Smith’s Bold Vision

Before the founding of Federal Express in 1973, the idea of shipping packages overnight was revolutionary—until a young businessman turned revolution into reality.

Frederick W. Smith was the longtime CEO and chairman of FedEx, a company he founded more than 50 years ago. The world took note of his passing on June 21, at age 80, with major news outlets such as the New York Times publishing lengthy obituaries. The coverage he received isn’t just because he started a multibillion-dollar overnight-package delivery company, but, rather, because he founded the entire air express industry. Smith and I were professional acquaintances. I had the pleasure of meeting him a few times, so I welcomed the opportunity to attend his memorial at FedExForum in Memphis on August 11, where I learned more about his remarkable life. 

When Smith was a student at Yale, he moonlighted as a charter pilot transporting computer parts. While logging hours in the cockpit, he was dreaming of a new business. In an interview that aired on CBS Sunday Morning in 2023, Smith summed up his entrepreneurial vision: “Your computer goes down. You have to have the part to fix it or you’re out of business. That’s the whole principle of FedEx.” As we all know, of course, FedEx ships a lot more than computer parts, and it seems like forever that we’ve had the option for express delivery of food, clothing, books, and so much more—but all this convenience started with Smith’s ability to peer into the future.

At the memorial service, we were told of Smith’s identity beyond his success as a corporate leader. He was a husband, father, philanthropist, and a patriot who spent four years in the U.S. Marine Corps after he graduated from Yale in 1966. He completed two tours of duty in Vietnam where he served as a rifle platoon leader, a company commander, and an aerial observer-tactical air controller in the North American Rockwell OV-10 Bronco. In the CBS interview, Smith spoke reverently of his decorated military service: “The Vietnam experience was the defining part of my life. Everything I ever accomplished in business is mostly what I learned in the Marine Corps. Particularly about leading people.”

Underlying Smith’s excellence in management was a genuine concern for his employees and a desire to give back. The memorial highlighted his status as a proud Memphian. By establishing FedEx’s headquarters in the city, Smith created thousands of jobs. The company has a tuition-refund program, and many students have put themselves through college by sorting packages at night.

FedEx has supported charitable causes too many to mention, and indeed the National Air and Space Museum is a beneficiary of Smith’s generosity. In 1983, Federal Express (as the company was then known) donated a Dassault Cargo Falcon 20 that, on April 17, 1973, had become the first airplane to carry a Federal Express air package. (The Falcon 20 is now on display at the Museum’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia.)

FedEx eventually outgrew its initial fleet of 14 Falcons, and the company now delivers 17 million packages a day on some 700 airplanes. The success of FedEx is a great American business story (one that should be taught in MBA courses—if it isn’t already), but it’s also a magnificent tale about the daunting logistics of air transport, and FedEx now has several worthy competitors. In a future issue of Air & Space Quarterly, we’ll publish a feature story that examines how these companies strategically use aviation to benefit all of us.

Christopher U. Browne is the John and Adrienne Mars Director of the National Air and Space Museum.

This article is from the Fall 2025 issue of Air & Space Quarterly, the National Air and Space Museum's signature magazine that explores topics in aviation and space, from the earliest moments of flight to today. Explore the full issue.

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