SOMAS APPAVOU NAMED AS NEW AIR MAURITIUS CEO
(Posted 28th June 2017)
For the year ended 31 March 2017 did the Air Mauritius Group and the airline itself record profits of Eur 27.6 million and Eur 26.9 million respectively as compared to profits of Eur 16.5 million and Eur 15.4 million for the previous year. The number of passengers carried went up by 6.9% to reach a record level of 1,602,632.The number of seats offered increased by 6.1% and the Passenger Load Factor increased from 78.7% to 79.6%. Operating revenue increased by 1.3% from Eur 488.3 million to Eur 494.8 million whereas the operating expenses increased slightly by 0.8% to reach Eur 447.3 million.
Consequently, the gross profit increased from Eur 44.4 million to Eur 47.5 million.
During the year, the Company pursued its growth strategy and as such the overall capacity went up by nearly 6%. Moreover, a third ATR72-500 joined the fleet in July 2016 to further consolidate the services to Rodrigues and Reunion.
Air Mauritius also embarked on a major fleet modernization initiative. The first two A350-900 will join the fleet in October 2017 and November 2017 whilst major cabin retrofitting will be carried out on the six existing aircraft during January to June 2018.
Together with Air France/KLM will flights to Amsterdam be introduced as of October 2017. The Amsterdam operation will allow the Company to target the Dutch market as well as the European markets, particularly the Nordic countries where KLM has a strong foothold. Moreover, seasonal operation to Geneva is planned between November 2017 and February 2018.
Meanwhile has the airline also confirmed the appointment of Mr. Somas Appavou as new Chief Executive Officer, effective 14th of July.
Somas Appavou began his career in the Planning Department at Air Mauritius before joining Airbus, where he held a number of positions including Head of Supply Chain in Hamburg, Regional Sales Director for Subcontinent India and Regional Sales Director for Africa. Since 2009 he held the position of Senior Sales Director Middle East and Africa based in Dubai.
There he was responsible for establishing Airbus’ presence in the markets for which he is responsible, growth of established airlines and assist in the development of new airlines in Africa. Said Somas when his appointment was announced: ‘I am very happy and honored to have been chosen to lead the national [airline] company at a decisive turning point in its history.
I would like to thank the Governing Body for their confidence. I am very aware of the expectations and hope for my appointment. The collaboration and support of all is indispensable for continuing the work already accomplished by all the teams. Bringing together all energies will be a priority so that the company can continue its development for the benefit of its clients, employees, shareholders and the country‘.
