35-year-old Black woman runs the world’s largest Black-owned airline

Photo: Western Air A Black woman running the world’s largest Black-owned and operated airline is looking to change up the aviation industry. A Travel Noire profile details the meteoric rise of 35-year-old Sherrexcia “Rexy” Rolle, Esq. and her family’s Bahamas-based airline Western Air. Rolle, who’s now the company’s first female President and CEO, said her parents conceived the idea for an airline business during a family trip to Florida. Pilot Rex Rolle and Shandrice Woodside-Rolle, an international businesswoman, launched Western Air in 2000. Rexy’s father served as the President and CEO of their airline through the end of 2023, while her mother was the Vice President and COO. Their daughter attended college with a focus on aviation and business law to prepare herself for the family business. Rexy served as Western Air’s vice president of operations and general counsel for nine years before she succeeded her father, who remains with the company for guidance. Her 15 years of experience fueled the rapid expansion of the airline, including launching the first routes into the United States and rebuilding the brand after COVID-19 and Hurricane Dorian. She was instrumental in Western Air hitting massive milestones, employing over 230 people, and growing into...