THE parent company of Etihad Airways has made sweeping changes to its management structure to facilitate the growth of the airline into a broader aviation conglomerate, announced its chairman Mubarak Al Mazrouei.
As part of the revamp, James Hogan, president and CEO of Etihad Airways since 2006, will now be president and CEO of Etihad Aviation Group, while Peter Baumgartner, who joined Etihad Airways since 2005, will take Hogan’s former position.
Etihad Aviation Group was formed in 2014 to accommodate Etihad’s growing businesses beyond its core passenger flight services, according to Al Mazrouei.
“Etihad Airways has been steadily evolving into the Etihad Aviation Group for a number of years. This has been driven by the formation of new companies, including Etihad Airways Engineering, Etihad Global Cargo Management Company, the Global Loyalty Company, Hala Abu Dhabi, and Etihad Airport Services,” he said.
Al Mazrouei added that the acquisition of minority equity stakes in other airlines such as Alitalia, Jet Airways and Virgin Australia has also necessitated the need for a dedicated team to manage the shareholding.
Further explaining the need for structural changes, Hogan said: “Etihad Airways is no longer a stand-alone business. The Etihad Aviation Group employs more than 27,000 people and these structural changes and appointments will ensure that we have a unified approach that links all parts of the group and provides wider strategic direction to deliver success.”
Etihad Airways first began operations in 2003 from its Abu Dhabi homebase.
