Occidental Petroleum flies from West Texas to Houston after a quarter of record production

Occidental Petroleum flew its Embraer ERJ-175, tail N170XY, from Crane County Airport in West Texas to Houston Bush Intercontinental on May 21, landing just after 6 p.m. local time. The brief 80-minute hop from the Permian Basin back to headquarters is a routine commute for an operator that moves executives and field teams between its Houston base and its core producing region.

This particular arrival comes the same week Occidental Petroleum reported first-quarter 2026 earnings, which showed total production of 1.426 million barrels of oil equivalent per day — above the high end of guidance, the company said in a May 5 press release [oxy.com](https://www.oxy.com/siteassets/documents/investors/quarterly-earnings/oxy1q26earningspressrelease.pdf). The flight also follows the May 1 announcement that CEO Vicki Hollub will retire effective June 1, with COO Richard Jackson succeeding her, per an SEC filing [sec.gov](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/797468/000095015726000569/form8-k.htm). The Permian Basin was a key driver of the production beat, and the aircraft's pattern in recent days — multiple trips between Houston, Crane County, and Carlsbad, New Mexico — suggests active monitoring of those assets.

The company's ERJ-175, a 76-seat regional jet, is used primarily as an employee shuttle. Its flight history shows it bouncing between Houston and West Texas regularly, moving personnel to and from Occidental Petroleum's extensive Permian operations.