Karryon Luxury Takeover March 2024 side lock up
Karryon Luxury Takeover March 2024 side lock up
Home Travel Industry Hub

Who were this week's travel industry movers & shakers? Fri 4 Nov

Who got a new gig this week? Check out this week’s travel industry movers & shakers.

Who got a new gig this week? Check out this week’s travel industry movers & shakers.

 

 

1. New COO for Malaysia Airlines Berhad & CEO for MASwings

travel industry malaysia-airlines-feature

Malaysia Aviation Group (MAG) this week announced the appointment of Captain Izham Ismail as the new Chief Operations Officer (COO) of Malaysia Airlines Berhad (MAB), effective 1 November 2016. Captain Izham served a short stint as CEO of MASwings and is now replaced by Aminuddin Zakaria.

In announcing the appointment, Group CEO Peter Bellew said: “On behalf of the Board of MAG, I am very pleased to welcome Captain Izham back to MAB. He is no stranger to the role having served as Director of Operations from 2012 to 2015. With close to 36 years of experience in the aviation industry, and having just completed the Advanced Management Programme at Harvard Business School, I am confident that he will be able to lead the Operations and Engineering Division to new levels of excellence. Being our own internal home grown talent, I look forward to working closely with him in delivering operational excellence to the entire Group”.

travel industry

Captain Izham began his career with Malaysia Airlines as a trained pilot from the Philippines Airline Aviation School and has operated various aircraft from the Fokker 27, Airbus 330 to the Boeing 747. He has served various management roles namely Head of Operations Programme Management Office, Executive Vice President of Flight Operations and General Manager for Technical and Development amongst others. He is also currently a Board of Director for various companies such as Hamilton Sundstrand Malaysia, MAB Kargo, MAB Academy and MAS Awana.

Peter Bellew added: “I also welcome Aminuddin to his new role at MASwings. He has over 27 years of professional experience in the engineering field and I am confident that he will develop a comprehensive and sustainable plan to improve MASwings’ operations, financial performance and customer service experience. The Group remains committed towards advancing this community airline serving rural air services in Sabah and Sarawak”.

Aminuddin holds a degree in Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering from Universiti Teknologi Malaysia and began his career at Malaysia Airlines as a Trainee, Aircraft Maintenance. He spent the next 12 years performing a variety of roles before moving to GE Aviation for the next 14 years, with his last position as Regional Sales Director for Asia Pacific. He re-joinedMalaysia Airlines in 2012 as Senior Vice President of Airline Engineering and was appointed as Head, Technical Operations in September 2015.

 

2. Katherine Gordon appointed as new Regional Director of Sales & Marketing for COMO’s London hotels

image002

COMO Hotels and Resorts are pleased to announce the appointment of their new Regional Director of Sales and Marketing for COMO Metropolitan London, COMO Metropolitan London Apartments and COMO The Halkin.

Katherine Gordon, who will be based at COMO Metropolitan London on Park Lane will be responsible for leading the Sales and Marketing, Revenue and Events Teams using her extensive experience to enhance the profile of the London properties.

Hailing from Scotland, Katherine graduated in Hospitality Management from The Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen. Her most recent position has been as Commercial Director at Belgraves, a Thompson Hotel where she has overseen the rebranding of the business to The Hari Hotel as part of Harilela Hotels.

Katherine first gained exposure in sales at the Coppid Beech Hotel in Bracknell before joining Sheraton and building a highly successful career with Starwood Hotels and Resorts followed by 5 years at the Jumeirah Carlton Tower & Jumeirah Lowndes Hotel as Director of Sales and Marketing.

Thomas Orchard, Regional General Manager at COMO Hotels London, said: “We are excited to welcome Katherine to the London team.  I’m confident that with Katherine’s wealth of knowledge and commercial acumen business into our London properties will continue to grow”.

 

3. Banyan Tree & Angsana Lăng Cô appoints CTM

banyan

Sales & Marketing Representation company Complete Travel Marketing is excited to announce the signing of a new partnership agreement with Banyan Tree Lăng Cô and its sister property Angsana Lăng Cô located on a 10km stretch of pristine beach just north of Da Nang, Central Vietnam.

As the official sales and marketing representative in the Australian and New Zealand market, Complete Travel Marketing will be responsible for raising the profile of the resorts through a strategic combination of sales and marketing activities.

Michal Zitek, Area General Manager for Banyan Tree & Angsana Lăng Cô sees this partnership as instrumental in growing the key Australia and New Zealand market.

“Vietnam continues its emergence as a vibrant destination for visitors from all over the world.   As a destination, the Central Coast of Vietnam represents a valid choice for leisure or Incentive travel and features some of the nation’s most significant natural & cultural attractions,” explained Mr Zitek.

“Australian & New Zealand travellers are increasingly curious about the rich culture, history and culinary delights of Vietnam and we look forward to further sharing the appeal of the Central Coast region here to the market with the support of the Complete Travel Marketing Team.”

Charlie Ridout, Director of Sales of Complete Travel Marketing adds: “we are excited to be representing two outstanding properties in such an unspoilt part of Vietnam. With each of the properties unique offerings there is something to suit every Australian and New Zealand traveller. These high-quality resorts appeal to couples, families, incentive groups, as well as the ardent golfer with the Nick Faldo Championship Golf Course.”

 

4. L.A. Tourism appoints new Travel Trade Manager

Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board (L.A. Tourism) has bolstered its on-the-ground team with the appointment of Carolyn Nightingale to the full-time role of Travel Trade Manager, Australia & New Zealand.

Nightingale will be responsible for trade relations across the Oceania market for L.A. Tourism, as well as promoting the redevelopment of Los Angeles International Airport, which is in the midst of a USD$14 billion renovation.

Based in L.A. Tourism’s Sydney office, Nightingale will report to Craig Gibbons, Regional Director, Australia and New Zealand.

Commenting on her appointment, Gibbons said: “I’m delighted Carolyn is joining the L.A. Tourism team at such an exciting time for Los Angeles. The city is currently undergoing an extensive revitalisation and redevelopment period, with new hotels, museums and attractions opening and expanding in various neighbourhoods. The Oceania market is L.A.’s second largest overseas visitation market and the ongoing developments will no doubt attract additional Aussie and Kiwi visitors to L.A. over the next few years.”

Prior to joining L.A. Tourism, Nightingale spent seven years as the Business Development Manager at Delta Air Lines. She is familiar with Los Angeles as a prime southern California destination and has extensive knowledge of the Australia and New Zealand market.

Did we miss someone? Send us an email and let us know.