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Air Canada president and chief operating officer Benjamin Smith will take over as CEO of Air France-KLM no later than Sept. 30.
The hire ends more than three months of uncertainty that began with the May 7 resignation of Air France-KLM CEO Jean-Marc Jenaillac amid labor unrest.
Since May, the company has been led jointly by KLM CEO Pieter Elbers, Air France CEO Franck Terner and Air France-KLM CFO Frederic Gagey.
Upon taking his new post, Smith will establish a new organizational structure with the aim of revitalizing Air France, the airline said.
“I am well aware of the competitive challenges the Air France-KLM Group is currently facing, and I am convinced that the airlines’ teams have all the strengths to succeed in the global airline market,” Smith said in a prepared statement Thursday.
Smith, who has been Air Canada’s president since 2014, will be the first non-French head of Air France-KLM.
Jenaillac’s resignation in May came amid 15 days of strikes between February and June by Air France workers demanding more pay.
Source: travelweekly.com
