Royal Jordanian’s Majali is New IATA Chairman, Cathay Pacific’s Tyler to Follow in 2009

Royal Jordanian Airlines CEO, Samer Majali has been appointed as the new Chairman of IATA's Board of Governors. Majali's term will last for a year, as he succeeds Fernando Pinto, CEO of TAP Portugal who served as Chairman from June 2007.

Majali, is a 29-year veteran of the air transport industry who has served as CEO of Royal Jordanian since 2001. He successfully led the airline through one of its most challenging periods as it prepared for a successful privatisation. Majali takes on the Chairman duties at a difficult time as the airline industry falls back into the red with fuel prices skyrocketing to unprecedented levels.

“With fuel prices at record highs, the industry faces a crisis and the agenda for the year ahead has extraordinary challenges. Change must be even more aggressive. Finding even more efficiency gains - not just for airlines but throughout the industry value chain - is crucial for our survival. We celebrated a great achievement - 100% e-ticketing. But there is no time to lose in pushing forward with the next phase of Simplifying the Business - Fast Travel,” said Majali.

Giovanni Bisignani, IATA Director General and CEO said, "First, we must thank Fernando Pinto for a job well done. His leadership over the past year helped us reach our goal to eliminate paper tickets. I am confident that Samer will provide a unique perspective and great leadership to help us deal with our growing challenges in the world of US$130 oil.”

IATA's Board of Governors has also agreed to appoint Tony Tyler, Chief Executive of Cathay Pacific to serve as Chairman following Majali, commencing in June 2009. Tyler is expected to bring a unique perspective from the Asia Pacific region, which will soon become the largest aviation market in the world.

The next World Air Transport Summit and IATA Annual General Meeting will be held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in June 2009.

Membership of the Board of Governors at the close of the 64th Annual General Meeting in Istanbul:

Mr Valery M. Okulov, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Aeroflot 
Mr Jean-Cyril Spinetta, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Air France 
Mr Willie Walsh, Chief Executive Officer, British Airways 
Mr Fernando Conte, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Iberia 
Mr Peter Hartman, President and Chief Executive Officer, KLM 
Mr Wolfgang Mayrhuber, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Lufthansa AG 
Mr Christoph Franz, President and Chief Executive Officer, SWISS 
Mr Fernando Pinto, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer,TAP Portugal 
Mr Temel Kotil, President and Chief Executive Officer, Turkish Airlines 
Mr Montie Brewer, President and Chief Executive Officer, Air Canada 
Mr Gerard Arpey, President and Chief Executive Officer, American Airlines 
Mr David Bronczek, President and Chief Executive Officer, Fedex Express 
Mr Douglas Steenland, President and Chief Executive Officer, Northwest Airlines 
Mr Glenn F. Tilton, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, United Airlines 
Mr Andrés Conesa, Chief Executive Officer, Aeromexico 
Mr Pedro Heilbron, Executive President and Chief Executive Officer, Copa Airlines 
Mr Enrique Cueto, Chief Executive Officer, LAN Airlines 
Mr Tony Tyler, Chief Executive, Cathay Pacific Airways 
Mr Liu Shaoyong, Chairman, China Southern Airlines 
Mr Haruka Nishimatsu, President and Chief Executive Officer, Japan Airlines 
Mr Naresh Goyal, Chairman, Jet Airways (India) Ltd. 
Mr Yang Ho Cho, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Korean Air 
Datuk Idris Jala, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Malaysia Airlines 
Mr Geoff Dixon, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director,Qantas Airways Limited 
Mr Chew Choon Seng, Chief Executive Officer, Singapore Airlines Limited 
Mr Sanjay Bhuckory, Chairman, Air Mauritius 
Captain Tawfik Assy, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Egyptair 
Mr Titus Tukero Naikuni, Chief Executive Officer and Group Managing Director, Kenya Airways 
Mr Samer Majali, President and Chief Executive Officer, Royal Jordanian 
Eng. Khalid Abdullah Almolhem, Director General, Saudi Arabian Airlines

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