Appointments

MINISTRY OF CIVIL AVIATION

CIVIL AVIATION SECRETARY

Chanchal Kumar, a 1992–batch Bihar cadre IAS, will take over as the new Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation after the incumbent Rajiv Bansal retires on August 31, 2023. Kumar, is currently the Managing Director of National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited, will join as OSD in the Civil Aviation Ministry on August 1, and take charge as Secretary after Rajiv Bansal retires.

IATA

CHAIR, IATA BOARD OF GOVERNORS

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced that RwandAir CEO Yvonne Manzi Makolo has assumed her duties as Chair of the IATA Board of Governors (BoG) for a one-year term, effective from June 5, 2023. Makolo is the 81st Chair of the IATA BoG and the first woman to take on this role. She has served on the BoG since November 2020. Makolo started her aviation career in 2017 when she was appointed as RwandAir’s Deputy CEO in Charge of Corporate Affairs. She was named CEO in April 2018.

ATR

SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT COMMERCIAL

Alexis Vidal has been appointed Senior Vice President Commercial for ATR, effective June 26, 2023. Alexis has held several senior management roles within the aerospace and defence industry. He began his career with the Airbus Group in 2004, moved to Airbus Helicopters in 2007 and held various management positions. He was appointed Vice President Sales for Energy and Leasing segments in 2016. He moved to Airbus Commercial Aircraft as Head of Sales for Customer Services in 2019. In his last position in 2021, Alexis was Head of Marketing for widebody programmes.

CFM

EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT

CFM International has appointed Jérôme Morhet as Executive Vice President,Commercial Engines Division, Safran Aircraft Engines. As part of the CFM Executive Team, Morhet is responsible for overseeing the CFM56 and LEAP programs, working closely with his counterparts at GE, LEAP engine and CFM56 product line, to monitor engineering, development, production, and services activities for these programs. Morhet also serves as Vice President of CFM programs for Safran Aircraft Engines.

EMBRAER

VICE PRESIDENT, FREIGHTER

Embraer has appointed Mark Neely to the position of Vice President Freighter, in its Commercial Aviation division, effective June 1, 2023. Neely boasts extensive experience in both the passenger and freighter markets and is set to lead the company’s growing focus on the Passenger to Freighter (P2F) aircraft opportunities and market development. He previously served as Vice President Sales & Marketing, Head of Region for North America, managing some of Embraer’s largest customers, serving all the major airlines in the US.

PRATT & WHITNEY

HEAD OF INDIA CUSTOMER TRAINING CENTRE

Pratt & Whitney, an RTX business, announced the appointment of Ajay Surti as the head of its India Customer Training Centre (ICTC) in Hyderabad. In his new role, Ajay Surti will lead Pratt & Whitney’s ICTC in Hyderabad, focusing on delivery of high-quality training to customers and developing new opportunities to provide field support. Ajay brings more than 27 years of experience in the aviation industry, having worked with various airlines and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) over the course of his extensive career. He is also a licensed aircraft engineer for both Airbus and Boeing planes.