June 21 (Reuters) - FedEx Corp's ( FDX ) founder and

former CEO Frederick Smith, who started the global delivery

conglomerate with more than a dozen planes in the 1970s, has

died, the company's CEO Raj Subramaniam said in memo to staff

posted on its website on Saturday.

Born in 1944, Smith was most recently serving as the firm's

executive chairman and focused on board governance, as well as

issues of global importance, including sustainability,

innovation and public policy, according to his profile on

FedEx's ( FDX ) website.

Smith stepped aside as FedEx's ( FDX ) CEO in 2022 and was succeeded

by Subramaniam, who was then the company's operations chief.

"Fred was more than just the pioneer of an industry and the

founder of our great company. He was a mentor to many and a

source of inspiration to all," Subramaniam said in the memo to

staff.

Smith, who served as an officer in the U.S. Marine Corps

in Vietnam, officially launched Federal Express in 1973 with 389

team members and 14 small planes that flew 186 packages from

Memphis to 25 U.S. cities.

FedEx ( FDX ) operations now include 705 aircraft, more than

200,000 vehicles and about 5,000 operating facilities, according

to its website. More than 500,000 employees worldwide handle

approximately 17 million shipments each day at FedEx ( FDX ).