New roles for the industry’s movers and shakers
Empire Aviation India
Empire Aviation India, a division of Air Works India and sister company to Dubai-based Empire Aviation Group (EAG), has appointed Pryank Sharma as new head of sales for northern India. He will lead the development of new relationships with private aircraft owners looking for professional aircraft management services. He brings with him more than 14 years’ experience and achievement in leadership roles in managing airline and general aviation sales in India. He was previously with Air Works India (a partner of EAG) and has also held senior positions with major commercial airlines, leading large teams and building national businesses and substantial corporate accounts.
Airbus Group
Airbus Group has consolidated its divisions in India under Airbus Group India. Taking responsibility of the new company as president is Pierre de Bausset, a 25-year veteran of Airbus Group and its former corporate secretary. The Group is tying up with Indian partners to target several ongoing defence acquisition programmes. It has submitted a joint bid with Tata to offer the C295 aircraft as a replacement for the Indian Air Force’s ageing Avro aircraft. The Group also plans to develop and manufacture electronic sensors here with a local partner.
Boeing
The Boeing board of directors has elected Dennis A Muilenburg as the company’s 10th chief executive, succeeding W James McNerney, Jr, who held the position for the past 10 years. Muilenburg, whohas served as Boeing president and chief operating officer since 2013, becomes president and CEO on July 1, 2015. McNerney Jr, who joined Boeing’s board of directors in 2001, continues as its chairman. To ensure a smooth transition of his CEO responsibilities to Muilenburg, he will continue working as a company employee until retiring at the end of February 2016, and continue advocating on issues important to Boeing’s US and global customers, partners and stakeholders, including ongoing Washington DC, engagement. Kenneth M, Duberstein, Boeing’s independent lead director, will continue in that capacity, and Muilenburg has been elected as a member of the board.
Tim Noonan has been appointed as vice president of training systems and government services (TSGS), effective immediately. Noonan replaces Bob Gower, who is retiring this month after nearly 30 years with the company. Noonan will lead more than 2,200 employees at six major TSGS sites within the company’s Global Services and Support division. The business develops and delivers aircrew and maintenance training, infrastructure support and logistics information management systems to customers all over the world. It also includes Tapestry Solutions, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Boeing Company that provides advanced logistics and supply chain solutions to defense and commercial customers.
Atout France
Sheetal Wadhwa Munshaw has been appointed as director- India, Atout France. Munshaw has over a decade of experience in the travel and tourism industry and was earlier the deputy director of Atout France in India (2004-05) prior to starting her own representation company, Avant Garde Consulting. She succeeds Catherine Oden, who will now head Greater China and will be based in Beijing in her new assignment.
IATA
Andres Conesa, CEO of Aeromexico, has assumed his duties as chairman of the IATA Board of Governors for a one-year term, effective immediately. Conesa is the first Mexican to hold this position. Conesa succeeds Calin Rovinescu, CEO, Air Canada, whose one-year term expired at the conclusion of the association’s 71st Annual General Meeting (AGM) and World Air Transport Summit in Miami, Florida. Rovinescu will continue to serve on the Board of Governors and the Chair Committee. Conesa has led Aeromexico, Mexico’s largest airline, since 2005 after a career spanning several key, finance-related posts in the Mexican public administration. Conesa has served as a member of the IATA Board of Governors since 2008. IATA also announced that Willie Walsh, CEO, International Airlines Group, will serve as chairman of the board of governors from June 2016, following Conesa’s term.
Sabre Airline Solutions
Sabre has appointed Jeff Fullmer as vice president and regional general manager of the Americas for the company’s Airline Solutions business. In this role, Fullmer will oversee the sales team for the Americas, including North America and Latin America and will work closely with airline customers in this region. He has 19 years of sales and customer management experience at IBM, where he most recently served as managing partner, Infrastructure Services. He has also held general manager, area general manager and regional manager positions within IBM.
His predecessor, Mike Douglass, has taken on a new role as vice president, global head of strategic sales, managing large airline software portfolio engagements, including working with airlines who require a complex set of solutions from the deepest and broadest portfolio in the airline industry. Both Douglass and Fullmer will report to Gilchrist. Fullmer earned his Bachelor of Science in Accounting from the University of Utah.
Bombardier Business Aircraft
David M Coleal has been appointed as president, Bombardier Business Aircraft, effective June 15, 2015. He succeeds Éric Martel, who is leaving the company after 13 years of service to pursue other career opportunities. Before Coleal first joined Bombardier in 2008, he was president and chief operating officer of Cirrus Design Corporation. He also held various management positions at McKinsey and Company, Caterpillar and New United Motor Manufacturing. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering Technology from California State University (CSU), Sacramento, and an MBA in Management Science from CSU, East Bay.
Bombardier has also appointed Jean-Paul Pellissier as a special advisor to conduct an extensive review of the company’s supply chain. Pellissier is an industry veteran with 25 years of experience at Dassault Aviation, most recently as senior vice president responsible for procurement. His focus will be to improve sourcing processes and supply chain efficiency.
Bombardier has appointed Jim Vounassis as vice president, operations strategy, effective June 15, 2015. In this new position, Vounassis will conduct a detailed review of the company’s operations and implement strategies to increase value creation across the organisation. In addition, he will lead Bombardier’s global action plan, focusing on improving profitability and execution to transform the business into a high performance organisation. Vounassis started his career at Kraft Canada before moving to Pratt and Whitney, where he spent nine years and fulfilled various management roles, including vice president, Strategic Sourcing from 2007 to 2009.