Satish Sethi was born in New Delhi and completed a degree in commerce and business studies at Delhi University, later joining his family’s real estate business. After gaining some business experience, he followed his interest and began working with a local Indian airline. He soon took up a position with KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, and in 1997 began working in Kuwait and Delhi, holding positions in reservations, airport services, revenue management and marketing.

He joined Emirates in 2001, where he began working in sales and marketing positions in Kuwait, and then later worked in Yemen, where he was eventually posted as country manager in 2007 before taking up a similar role in Bangladesh from 2010.