IndiGo appoints IATA chief William Walsh as new CEO
New Delhi: The country’s largest airline IndiGo on Tuesday announced the appointment of William Walsh, a pilot and current chief of the global airlines’ grouping IATA, as its next CEO.
The appointment comes less than three weeks after the sudden exit of Pieter Elbers against the backdrop of massive operational disruptions at the airline in December last year.
An airline industry veteran, Walsh, popularly known as Willie, was formerly CEO of British Airways and IAG (International Airlines Group, a holding company, which owns Aer Lingus, British Airways, Iberia, Level and Vueling).
Announcing the appointment of Walsh as the CEO, which is subject to regulatory approvals, IndiGo, in a
release, said his tenure at IATA comes to a close on July 31
and is expected to join no later than August 3.
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) is the global grouping of airlines, including IndiGo, Air India, Air India Express and SpiceJet. The appointment of Walsh was approved by the board of InterGlobe Aviation on Tuesday.
As IndiGo CEO, Walsh will be responsible for the overall management and strategic direction of the
airline with a focus on transformational initiatives to strengthen the operational
performance, advance the company’s network and commercial strategy while enhancing customer experience.
“He will work closely with the board and the leadership team to rightfully position IndiGo as it scales up to the next phase of its growth,” the airline said.
Walsh will also be among the few CEOs who are also pilots. Only a handful of people who were pilots have helmed an Indian airline. He will be the third foreign CEO for IndiGo, which started operations in August 2006.
As the IATA chief, Walsh is known to express his views in a frank and direct manner.
IndiGo Managing Director Rahul Bhatia described Walsh as an “iconic and accomplished aviation leader”. Bhatia said Walsh brings a rare combination of global perspective, operational expertise of having built strong customer-focused airlines, deep industry experience and a values-driven leadership, making him exceptionally suited to lead IndiGo at this pivotal cusp of growth.
