Air Seychelles names interim chief executive ahead of year of change
General |Author: Betymie Bonnelame | December 20, 2017, Wednesday @ 15:40| 2981 views
Remco Althuis, a citizen of the Netherlands, is Air Seychelles interim CEO. (Air Seychelles)
The Seychelles’ national carrier, Air Seychelles, announced Tuesday the appointment of an interim chief executive to succeed the present one, whose resignation takes effect end of December.
Remco Althuis, 48, a citizen of the Netherlands, succeeds Roy Kinnear who leaves Air Seychelles on December 31. Kinnear, an Irishman, joined the national airline of Seychelles, a group of 115 islands in the western Indian Ocean, in July 2015.
The interim chief executive will be with Air Seychelles for six months after which the airline will announce a permanent CEO.
Althuis joined Etihad Airways in 2012 and was recently the regional general manager for Europe, with responsibility for the airline’s commercial activities in 17 European markets.
“I am honoured and delighted to join Air Seychelles, and with the support of the shareholders, look forward to driving the strategic development of the business," Althuis said in a statement.
“Like all airlines in the commercial aviation industry, we continue to face significant challenges. However, I am confident that together with the Air Seychelles workforce, we’ll continue to enhance the business and spread the Creole spirit," he added.
The chair of the Air Seychelles’ board, Jean Weeling-Lee said, “Remco is a highly talented executive with a wealth of experience in aviation and a proven track record in leadership roles. His extensive skills will be crucial to ensuring that Air Seychelles continues to develop in ways that achieve our commercial objective of sustainable profitability.
The interim chief executive joins the Seychelles' national carrier which will be facing transformation next year, according to an announcement made by the tourism minister in answering questions from members of the National Assembly on Tuesday.
Minister Maurice Loustau-Lalanne told the Assembly the airline submitted a plan for the transformation of Air Seychelles for consideration to the Etihad Airways Board on December 10.
“Right now I don’t have anything in writing from the board’s secretary to confirm its decision but I can affirm to the assembly at 99 percent that all conditions for the proposed transformation have been accepted,” said Loustau-Lalanne.
He added that “there will a restructuring at Air Seychelles that will start by the end of March to the beginning of April next year.”
The minister said that with the restructuring there will be a number of the 850 staff of Air Seychelles who will be made redundant.