LAN Airlines expands Sydney Regional Office with Three New Appointments

LAN Airlines has expanded its Sydney regional office with three new appointments. The office is responsible for sales and marketing activities in Australia, New Zealand and Asia.

The airline’s General Manager Australia, NZ and Asia, Mr Rodrigo Contreras, said the changes were part of a significant new growth strategy for LAN in the region, as business and leisure travel to South America continue to grow strongly.

Karl Hecht has been appointed Sales Manager Australia and New Zealand, to develop and implement LAN’s expanded sales strategy for the Australasian market, and to maximise earnings from the continued growth in South America’s popularity.

Karl has been with LAN for five years, having previously worked in the Route Economics Department and various revenue management roles at the company’s head office in Santiago, Chile.

He succeeds Catalina Gonzalez, one of LAN’s founding team members in Australia / NZ, who recently departed the airline to move to Europe.

To further help accommodate the strong growth in this market, LAN has created the new position of Corporate and Leisure Executive, and appointed Martin Santibanez to this role after two years in revenue and financial management roles with the shipping company CCNI.

In his new role with LAN, Martin is responsible for identifying and capitalising on profitable growth opportunities in both corporate and leisure travel in Australia, New Zealand and Asia.

The third new member of the LAN team is Juan Carlos Selman, who will join the airline’s Sydney office from next Monday, 1 September, as Market Manager Asia, with responsibility for developing LAN’s passenger sales to South America from throughout Asia. This region is becoming increasingly important for LAN, which currently has General Sales Agency representation through seven offices in four countries.

Juan Carlos is currently LAN Sales Manager UK, based in London, a position he has held since March 2007. In Australia, he will succeed Dieter Fuchs, another founding member of the Sydney team, who has returned to Santiago to become LAN’s Manager Strategic Alliances.

LAN operates daily one-stop flights from Sydney to Santiago, Chile, via Auckland, New Zealand. Flights are operated with three-class Airbus A340-300 aircraft.

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