AirBaltic's new CEO is none other than the former Executive Vice President of SAS, Hilden.
New CEO Appointed for airBaltic
Erno Hilden, a Finnish national with over 25 years of international experience in aviation and finance, has been appointed as the new CEO of airBaltic. The appointment comes after an extensive search by airBaltic’s Supervisory Board, which evaluated several highly qualified candidates.
Hilden's extensive background includes roles as Group CFO, Chief Operating Officer (COO), and a member of the Executive Board at Finnair Plc, as well as senior positions at Saudi Arabian Airlines Group and SAS Scandinavian Airlines. Most recently, he served as Executive Vice President and Group CFO at SAS Scandinavian Airlines, playing a key role in the company's financial restructuring, transformation, and capital raising.
The Supervisory Board highlighted Hilden's combined expertise in aviation operations and finance as crucial for airBaltic as it prepares for its next phase of growth and development. The current interim CEO, Pauls Cālītis, will return to his role as COO after Hilden assumes leadership.
Hilden expressed his appreciation for the trust placed in him and stated that his focus will be on ensuring continuity, supporting the Executive Board, maintaining operational stability, and contributing to the company's long-term objectives. The Supervisory Board expects him to leverage his international experience to help airBaltic consolidate its position in the market, pursue growth opportunities, and enhance resilience in the evolving aviation sector.
The appointment follows an agreement with German airline Lufthansa for investments in airBaltic of EUR 14 million, with Lufthansa Group receiving a convertible share giving it a 10 percent stake. The convertible share will be converted into ordinary shares at a later date, following the IPO of airBaltic. Lufthansa Group will own at least 5 percent of the capital of airBaltic after the potential IPO, as per the agreement. The Latvian government must retain at least 25 percent plus one share in the capital of airBaltic after the IPO, while the Latvian state currently owns 97.97 percent of the airline's shares, with Danish businessman Lars Thuesen's Aircraft Leasing 1 owning 2.03 percent.
The IPO of airBaltic has not occurred yet, as of the date of the report. The size of Lufthansa Group's holding in airBaltic after the IPO will be determined by the potential IPO market price. The former Chairman of the Management Board and CEO of airBaltic, Martin Gauss, was dismissed by the Supervisory Board on April 7, 2023. No new CEO has been appointed yet, following Gauss's dismissal.
[1] https://www.airbaltic.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/press-releases-2023/new-ceo-for-airbaltic-appointed [2] https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-and-defense/airbaltic-names-new-ceo-finland-s-hilden-2023-04-28/ [3] https://www.bloombergquint.com/onweb/airbaltic-names-new-ceo-erno-hilden-from-sas-scandinavian-airlines [4] https://www.flightglobal.com/airlines-airports/airbaltic-names-new-ceo-erno-hilden-from-sas-scandinavian-airlines/187166.article
Note: This article is generated by an AI and may contain minor inaccuracies or errors. Please verify the information with official sources before using it in any critical context.
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