Flybe reveals new senior leadership team as it prepares for Birmingham take-off
Flybe, which announced last year that Birmingham Airport will be its new company HQ and first new crew base, has revealed its new senior leadership team.
The team will assist CEO Dave Pflieger with the launch and growth of one of the UK’s newest airlines as it prepares to take to the skies this spring.
The news follows the April 2021 sale of the business and assets of Flybe Ltd (in administration, now renamed FBE Realisations Ltd) to Thyme Opco Limited (now renamed Flybe Limited).
Members of Flybe’s new team are:
Philip Saunders, chief commercial officer.
Saunders has held senior leadership roles in commercial, sales, marketing, and distribution at seven other airlines in the UK and around the world including British Airways, Deutsche BA, SN Brussels Airlines, Caribbean Airlines, Air Malta, Kuwait Airways, and South African Airways. In addition to leading highly successful commercial transformations at these various national airlines, he was also a senior executive at Travelport in the travel technology industry.
John Jackson, chief operations and customer service officer.
Jackson will be responsible for delivering operational excellence and world-class customer service across the airline by leading Flybe’s Airports, Flight Operations, Cabin Crew, People, and IT teams. He brings with him more than 30 years of industry experience having held previous senior roles with Continental, United Airlines, dnata, and Ravn Air Group in Alaska.
Ron Karger, chief technical officer.
Karger has more than 32 years experience in aviation maintenance and technical operations with previous roles including senior leadership positions at Air Canada Jazz, WestJet, WestJet Encore, and Pacific Coastal Airlines. As the director of maintenance at Encore, he oversaw the airline’s growth from start-up status to a fleet with forty-two Dash 8-400 aircraft.
Jim Comer, director of finance.
Comer is a chartered management accountant with 20 years experience in the aviation industry. Involved with the previous Flybe Ltd. since 2001, he has held roles in Treasury, FP&A, and Finance Business partnering, and he also played an important role in several pivotal projects including the acquisition and integration of BA Connect in 2007, the successful listing of Flybe on the London Stock Exchange in 2010, and the successful sale of Flybe’s business and assets in April 2021 to Cyrus Capital Partners L.P.
CEO, Dave Pflieger, said of the new additions: “We are extremely excited to have such accomplished industry leaders joining Flybe’s management team. Each one brings a wealth of professional experience and knowledge that will prove invaluable as we look to launch the new Flybe, but also create a strong community focused airline that people love.”
