Richard Anderson, CEO of the world’s biggest airline in terms of fleet size, is more focused on reliable aircraft performance than fuel economy, and more on flight frequency than aircraft size.

During a visit to Seattle this week to lecture on leadership at the University of Washington Foster School of Business, Delta Air Lines CEO Anderson offered some surprises as he took a few minutes to share his views on aircraft acquisition and fleet management.

For starters, he isn’t restive to get the Boeing 787, despite the fact that Delta was one of the the first U...