Jeff Klee

CEO & Co-Founder | Jeff is a self-described computer geek who developed and sold his first video game at the age of 13. In college, he and a buddy got a crash course in the intricacies of the airline business while planning their own backpacking trip and later decided to use that know-how to help others save money on air fares. What was first known as 1-800-Cheap-Air was founded out of a University of Michigan dorm room in 1989. When the company took off, Jeff ditched his law school plans for a far more exciting journey, combining two passions – travel and software development. CheapAir.com was born, and soon after AmTrav for Business which together serve almost 400,000 travelers annually. Jeff grew up in Los Angeles. He still lives there with his wife, two young kids, and Golden Retriever, none of whom wants to be anywhere near him when the Dodgers are losing.

Jeff Klee at The Beat Live 2023: "The End of the Beginning"

Last December, our CEO Jeff Klee delivered the keynote speech at The Beat Live Conference in New...

Amid Growing Pains, A Reminder Why We’re Still All-In on NDC

Jeff Klee | August 14, 2023
This is an adapted version of a guest-post that was originally published by The Beat.

Alexander...

Things You Should Know Before Booking Your Next Hotel Stay

Jeff Klee | June 17, 2021

At the risk of boring you to death, I am going to talk a little about what happens “under the hood”...

A Struggle To Put 2020 Accomplishments In Context

Jeff Klee | January 1, 2021

It wasn’t a typical New Year’s Eve, but 2020 is finally behind us. In a few days we’ll get back to...

Why I'm So Excited About AmTrav's New Flight Shopping Tool

Jeff Klee | December 31, 2020

In the summer of 2019, back when conferences were still a thing, I was invited to speak at an...

Why We Decided to Build Our Own Chat Platform

Jeff Klee | September 23, 2020

Like the proverbial tree that falls in the woods with no one around to hear it, what if we made a...

From Our CEO: Sad Times, Green Shoots, and Trying Not to Waste a Crisis

Jeff Klee | June 4, 2020

Although it seems like a lifetime ago, last weekend I watched the SpaceX ship blast off and...

THIS IS NO TIME FOR TRAVEL: A NOTE FROM OUR CEO

Jeff Klee | March 19, 2020

Today all of us are grappling with uncertainty and confusion and our hearts bleed for those who...

Measuring What Matters With NDC

Jeff Klee | February 9, 2020

“New Distribution Capability” (NDC) is an airline initiative to modernize the way airline tickets...

ON BABIES, BATHWATER, and TMCs

Jeff Klee | April 15, 2019

This Op-Ed first appeared April 8, 2019 on The Company Dime.

In his recent post, “On The...

Are We Fiddling With NDC as Rome Burns?

Jeff Klee | August 6, 2018

“New Distribution Capability” (NDC) is an airline initiative to modernize the way airline tickets...