Virgin Atlantic appoints new CEO.

Aviation Nigeria

Virgin Atlantic have announced that they will appoint Craig Kreeger as their new Chief Executive.  This came as a press statement release on January 10, 2012. Kreeger will assume the role on February 1st, joining from American Airlines, where he has held a 27-year career spanning commercial, financial and strategic roles in the US and around the globe.

Kreeger, 53, succeeds current CEO, Steve Ridgway, who is retiring from the airline. Last September Atlantic announced that Ridgway would retire in spring 2013, once a successor was in place, following a 23-year tenure with the airline. Becoming Chief Executive in 2001 he has seen Atlantic grow from two 747s to a fleet of 40 long haul aircraft, flying six million passengers a year all over the world.

“We are thrilled to welcome Craig to Virgin Atlantic – he is the right person to succeed Steve Ridgway at this dynamic and challenging time for our airline. We believe Craig has the experience and passion to drive Virgin Atlantic forward and capitalise on the opportunities created by our new venture with Delta Airlines,” commented Richard Branson. 

Kreeger, a graduate of the University of California in San Diego and with a MBA from UCLA, joined American Airlines in 1985 as an analyst and was appointed Senior Vice President, Customer in 2012. He spent six years in London as Senior Vice President, International and was responsible for AA operations and sales throughout Europe, the Middle East, Africa and the Pacific. He has worked on AA joint ventures with British Airways and Iberia across the Atlantic, as well as its partnership with Japanese Airlines in the Pacific.

“I am delighted to be taking on the role of Virgin Atlantic’s Chief Executive. It is a great airline renowned for its customer service and innovation. I have been competing with it for many years but have always admired its laser focus on its people, its products and its customers. I am looking forward to working with the Virgin Atlantic team to build on Steve’s achievements and create the next exciting chapter,” explained Kreeger.

Steve Ridgway will introduce and work alongside Craig Kreeger until the end of February 2013.

SCOTUS Will Not Block AA Passenger Service Union Vote.

Sky Watch Nigeria.

A request for a hearing before the Supreme Court of the United States by American Airlines in an effort to block its passenger service agents from voting on union representation has been denied by Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, allowing a vote to go forward next week.

The Communications Workers of America has been pushing for a vote by the 9,700 agents for about a year. American spokesman Bruce Hicks said that the Supreme Court request to block the vote was an attempt by the airline to recognize that the majority of those workers did not ask for or approve of the vote to join the union. But "with the election going forward, we urge all of our agents and representatives to vote," he said.

The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports that the airline sought to block the vote because the union failed to get authorization cards from 50 percent of the affected workers ... a standard included in a law enacted in February. The National Mediation Board disagreed, saying that because the application had been filed before December 2011 that an earlier 35 percent benchmark should apply.

It would have required four of the nine Supreme Court Justices to agree to hear the case, which did not happen. That hearing would likely not have come before January in any case. The paper reports that voting instructions have gone out to the workers, and that the outcome will be decided by a majority of the votes cast.

SOURCE: Good Pilot News.