Mitsuko Tottori

Mitsuko Tottori first joined Japan Airlines—the airline she now leads as its first-ever woman CEO—as a flight attendant. JAL posted record revenue of 2 trillion Japanese yen ($12.9 billion) in its 2025 fiscal year (which ended in March), a 9.1% jump, thanks to Japan’s booming tourism market and expanding cargo operations. Tottori is overseeing a fleet refresh, bringing on new Airbus A350s and Boeing 787s; she’s also expanding JAL’s low-cost carrier Zipair to new routes in North America and Asia.