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New SVP at IATA
IATA has appointed Sebastian Mikosz as its senior vice-president for member and external relations.
Most recently, Mr Mikosz was group managing director and CEO of Kenya Airways (2017-2019), during which time he served on the IATA board of governors. Prior to that he was the CEO of LOT Polish Airlines and the CEO of Poland’s largest online travel agency, the eSKY Group.
At IATA, he will lead its global advocacy activities and aero-political policy development and manage its strategic relationships. This includes IATA’s 290 member airlines as well as governments, international organisations and stakeholders in both the private and public sectors. He will report to the director general and CEO and join the IATA’s strategic leadership team. He replaces Paul Steele, who retired in October 2019.
Alexandre de Juniac, IATA’s director general and CEO, said: “Sebastian brings with him a wealth of experience in the public and private sectors that will be critical in advancing the global aviation industry’s advocacy agenda. At this time of unprecedented crisis, the airline industry needs a strong voice. We must restore the confidence of governments and travellers so that aviation can re-start, lead an economic recovery and connect the world.”
ADB SAFEGATE names new CEO
Laurent Dubois has become the new CEO of ADB SAFEGATE.
Mr Dubois was previously the CEO of Zürich-based GE Healthcare Partners. He replaces Christian Onselaere, who remains with the company and will support Mr Dubois as chairman and board member. Joe Pokoj continues as CEO for ADB SAFEGATE Americas, reporting to Mr Dubois.
“It’s certainly an exciting and challenging time to join the air travel industry,” said Mr Dubois. “I want to ensure that ADB SAFEGATE is a big part of the solution when it comes to recovering from the impact of the current pandemic. By enabling improved efficiency and more accurate predictability, we can help our customers create smoother airport operations that will deliver a better passenger experience and encourage people to travel again, once it is safe to do so.”
Swissport Belgium welcomes CEO
Swissport has appointed Thierry Miremont as CEO of Swissport Belgium. Mr Miremont oversees the airport ground services and cargo handling business of Swissport at the airports in Brussels and Liège.
He reports to Luzius Wirth, executive vice-president EMEA of Swissport International.
Swissport said Mr Miremont has professional experience in transforming, restructuring and turning around organisations. He was a partner at McKinsey & Company, where he was the global co-head for the airline industry business. Furthermore, he was chairman of the Executive Board at French tour operator FRAM, president of TNT Express in France and, more recently, served as CEO of Euromaster Group, a tyre and vehicle maintenance specialist.
Vienna changes
VIP & General Aviation Services at Vienna Airport now has two managing directors following an appointment on April 1. Christoph Schmidt is a new MD of Vienna Aircraft Handling (VAH), a fully owned subsidiary of Flughafen Wien, the company that operates Vienna Airport. He is working with Michael Zach, who has been a company MD since 2016. VAH said Mr Schmidt has longstanding management experience, especially in the energy sector. Mr Schmidt succeeds the previous managing director, Joubin Pour.
Julian Jäger and Günther Ofner, both members of the management board of Flughafen Wien, issued a statement: “Christoph Schmidt brings many years of extensive management and marketing experience to the company, thus enriching the team at Vienna Aircraft Handling. In particular, the market for general aviation and VIP services encompasses many business areas, and our subsidiary Vienna Aircraft Handling offers optimal total solutions in this field. Our management duo of Christoph Schmidt and Michael Zach will provide fresh impetus here.”
Mr Zach said: “Our customers expect the highest standards of professionalism and service quality when it comes to general aviation and VIP services. I look forward to collaborating with Christoph Schmidt to further develop our solutions and products for our customers together with him.”
Mr Schmidt added: “I very much look forward to this responsible task, which I am honoured to take on during this particularly exciting and challenging time. A committed and professional team awaits me, and together we will continue to succeed in offering the highest-quality VIP and general aviation services for the benefit of our customers and guests.”
Mr Schmidt (32) studied business administration and business law in Vienna, at the St Galler Business School in Switzerland as well as at Harvard Business School. During his studies, he became an assistant to the executive board of Energie Burgenland. Shortly afterwards, he was promoted to commercial director of Energie Burgenland Green Power, and built up the operations of the energy supplier as its sole managing director. Two years later, he accepted a position in the Austrian Federal Chancellery as the deputy head of cabinet for the former Federal Minister for the EU, Arts, Culture and Media. In addition, he has been a Member of the supervisory board of the Wiener Zeitung newspaper company since 2018.
Lee County chooses finance director
Dave Amdor, CPA, has joined the Lee County Port Authority (LCPA) as the director of finance. He is now responsible for all financial aspects for LCPA, including overseeing the accounting, budgetary and purchasing functions, as well as managing the capital improvement programme for Southwest Florida International Airport (IATA: RSW) and Page Field (FMY) in Fort Myers.
The LCPA siad that Mr Amdor has more than 12 years of public and private accounting and finance experience. Most recently, he worked as the finance manager for the Omaha Airport Authority, where he was responsible for operating Eppley Field (OMA) in Nebraska. Before that, he was the controller and assistant controller at OMA since 2011. He started his career as an auditor at Deloitte & Touche in Omaha and is a certified public accountant. He has both an MBA and a degree in accounting.
