Vistara’s chief commercial officer Vinod Kannan to be the new Chief Executive Officer of the airline, the company said in a statement, adding that Kannan will take charge from January 1, 2022.
The current CEO, Leslie Thng, who led the Airline for more than four years, is moving back to Singapore Airlines.
“Leslie Thng, Chief Executive Officer, will move on to take up a senior appointment with Singapore Airlines from 1st January 2022. The Board of the Company TATA SIA Airlines Limited has named Mr. Vinod Kannan to succeed Mr. Thng effective 1st January 2022”
the company issued the statement on September 14
Thng had succeeded Vistara’s first CEO Phee Teik Yeoh in October 2017. Yeoh too had moved back to join a senior position at SIA after completing his four-year stint at the airline.
Kannan, who is currently serving as Vistara’s Chief Commercial Officer, joined the airline in June 2019 as Chief Strategy Officer and currently heads amongst others Network Planning, Revenue Management, Marketing, Customer Experience, and Cabin Service functions.
He started his career with Singapore Airlines in 2001 and has held various senior positions in the airline.
Before joining Vistara, Kannan served as Chief Commercial Officer for Scoot — the budget airline subsidiary of the Singapore Airlines Group.
He has handled global network planning and has spent eight years running operations in Indonesia, Italy, and Saudi Arabia.
He holds a master’s degree in business administration from the National University of Singapore and the University of California, Los Angeles.
“Leslie has led the airline through a significant phase, with the start of international operations and the entry into service of various aircraft including the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner,” said Vistara’s Chairman, Bhaskar Bhat.
Bhaskar Bhat, Vistara’s Chairman
Now, Kannan will lead Vistara in its next phase of growth, building on the strong foundation laid by Thng, he said.
“This Company continues to benefit from the strong commitment of the two partners Tata Sons and Singapore Airlines to Vistara”
Bhaskar Bhat
TATA SIA Airlines Limited, known by the brand name Vistara, is a 51:49 joint venture between Tata Sons Limited and Singapore Airlines Limited (SIA).
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Information credits to moneycontrol.
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