W. Whitley "Whit" Hawkins

W. Whitley “Whit” Hawkins, 85, of Marco Island, FL died July 20, 2017. Born in Versailles, KY, to the late Clinton Whitley and Elizabeth Jefferson Cockrell he spent his elementary and high school years in Mt. Sterling, KY. Whit attended Centre College at Danville, KY and the University of Kentucky at Lexington. He served four years in the U.S. Navy during the Korean War, most of that time as an air traffic controller at the U.S. Naval Air Development Center in Johnsville, PA.

He joined Delta Air Lines as a Transportation Agent in Lexington, KY in March of 1955. His career at Delta included assignments as a Sales Representative in Birmingham, AL and Louisville, KY before moving to Delta’s headquarters in Atlanta, GA where he served in a number of positions including Regional Sales Manager, Director of Advertising, General Manager of Passenger Sales, Director of Sales, Assistant Vice President-Marketing, Vice President-Marketing, Sr. Vice President-Marketing, Executive Vice President-Marketing and Stations. Whit retired from Delta on March 1, 1993 as President and Chief Operating Officer.

While at Delta, Whit's most cherished achievements include the much celebrated merger with Western Airlines; the title, creation, and development of the Delta Connection program; development of the Worldspan computer system; acquisition of the Pan American's shuttle and North Atlantic routes.

Following his retirement from Delta, Whit established his own consulting firm, Hawkins-Bricker International, specializing in marketing, management and product development. In October of 1993 he established HBI Inc. manufacturer of chemical coatings for a wide range of industries, now operated by his eldest son. Whit also served on the board of Directors of Questar Corporation, Salt Lake City, UT and on the Advisory Council of SunTrust Corporation, Atlanta, GA.

Whit and Betty Lou Bricker were married in 1953. They have three children, six grandchildren and one great grandson. Whit will be dearly missed. He is survived by his devoted wife of 64 years, Betty; son,
W. Whitley "Skip" (Pamela) Hawkins, Jr. of Smyrna, GA; son, Jeffrey Hunt Hawkins of Albany, GA; daughter, Tracy Lyn Hawkins of Panama City Beach, FL; daughter-in-law, Jan Hawkins; grandchildren, W. Whitley Hawkins, III, Rebecca Hawkins, Clinton Hawkins, Ashley Nestale, Eric Nestale, Sarah Catherine Hawkins; and great grandson, W. Whitley Hawkins, IV.

No services are scheduled.
 

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