Virgin Atlantic
Virgin Atlantic has appointed Nutan Sneha as sales manager. In this role, she will be responsible for growing Virgin Atlantic’s relationships within the travel community as well as driving the corporate sales business in Mumbai. She brings with her nine years of industry experience and strong understanding of the aviation environment. Prior to this appointment, she worked with Cathay Pacific and Thomas Cook (I) and growing sales with a focus on the corporate sector.
West Bengal
Vikram Sen has taken over as principal secretary, Department of Tourism, Government of West Bengal.
Air Canada
Air Canada has appointed Derek Vanstone as vice president, Corporate Strategy, Industry and Government Affairs effective September 10, 2012. In addition to his role in helping shape corporate strategy and direction, Vanstone will have overall responsibility for federal, provincial, municipal and community relations as well as industry affairs.Vanstone, currently deputy chief of staff to the prime minister, was chief of staff to the federal minister of Finance from 2007 to 2010. He previously practiced law in Toronto with Gowling Lafleur Henderson.
Tiger Airways
Tiger Airways Holdings (Tiger) has appointed Koay Peng Yen as group chief executive officer. Yen will take over from Chin Yau Seng who will be returning to Singapore Airlines. Yen was executive director of Pacific Carriers and PaxOcean Engineering Group, Kuok Group companies involved in the marine and offshore engineering, offshore services, and shipping industries. Prior to this, he was the group CEO of IMC Corp. He earlier spent 18 years with the NOL Group in various senior management roles, including as president of Greater China.
Tourism Australia
Tourism Australia has appointed two new regional general managers to oversee the essential Western markets of Continental Europe and the United States.
Eva Seller will head up operations in Continental Europe, while Jane Whitehead becomes regional manager for The Americas.
Maggie White is the outgoing regional manager South, South-East Asia, Gulf whose position is under recruitment and due for replacement at the conclusion of this year.
Amadeus
Amadeus has appointed ex-SAP executive vice president, Hervé Couturier, as executive vice president of development. Couturier, who has some 25 years of international software development experience gleaned from previous high-profile roles at SAP, IBM and Business Objects, will head up Amadeus’ 4,500+ strong software development organisation across its 15 different sites worldwide.
Travelport
Travelport has appointed Alexandra Fitzpatrick as its new general manager for the Pacific region. Based in Travelport’s regional headquarters in Sydney, Fitzpatrick will be charged with driving the company’s overall growth across the region and supporting the regional deployment of new and innovative Travelport technology to customers.
MSpa International
MSpa International has appointed Lee Stephens as general manager. A respected spa and beauty industry leader with 19 years experience to his credit, Stephens will lead MSpa’s continued growth in the region and beyond. Most recently he was managing director of Sol Spa Services, his own successful spa consultancy in Hong Kong.
Melbourne Convention + Visitors Bureau
Edwina San, formerly MCVB’s director international incentives, has accepted the position of general manager commercial partnerships and will head the new department.
Jon Malpas, formerly MCVB’s senior manager events and marketing services, will report to San in the position of associate director partnerships and events.
Rebecca Elliott, MCVB’s communications manager, will take over the management of marketing, in addition to communications, and will also report into San.
In the business development and convention sales department, Julia Swanson has been promoted to general manager business development and bidding, and in line with the new strategic business plan this department will now include a dedicated research team headed up by Danielle Ramirez as associate director research.
