Aviation veteran Sanjiv Kapoor has been appointed as the first Chief Executive Officer of the revived Jet Airways under its new promoters. Kapoor, who had joined Oberoi Hotels last year, was earlier the Chief Commercial Officer at Vistara.
Vipula Gunatilleka has been hired as the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Jet Airways..
After being grounded for almost three years, Jet Airways is likely to start flying again in May under its new promoters. Its 10-hour long technical flight will be scheduled this month and will commence from Delhi.
Kapoor has over 25 years of experience in the airline industry. He was appointed the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of SpiceJet in 2013 and has worked with Northwest Airlines, Bain and Company, Temasek Holdings (Singapore) and BCG (the Boston Consulting Group).
Murari Lal Jalan, Lead Partner of the Jalan-Kalrock Consortium and proposed Non-Executive Chairman of Jet Airways, said, “I am happy to have Sanjiv join our team. He is a people’s person and has all the qualities of a great leader. I am certain he will be able to lead Jet Airways and make it the most preferred full-service carrier of India. Sanjiv is a seasoned aviation professional who has the right blend and demeanour to stitch a team together.”
Jalan added, “I always believe in investing in human capital and by having Sanjiv as the CEO and Vipula as the CFO, I am certain Jet Airways will reclaim its lost glory and surpass everyone’s expectation.”
Kapoor said he is looking forward to getting back to aviation, an industry he is passionate about.
“Even though Jet Airways has been out of operation for three years, it still has a large fan base of loyal customers who miss it every day and can’t wait for it to take to the skies again. Working together with the strong team of experienced aviation professionals that is being put together by the Jalan-Kalrock Consortium, I look forward to leading the charge in rebuilding Jet Airways into a people-focused airline for the digital age,” he said.
Kapoor grew up in Kolkata where he did his schooling at La Martiniere. He received his MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and his BA in Computer Science from Dartmouth College, USA.
Ameya Joshi, aviation analyst, said, “Jet Airways 2.0 has been in the news for being slow. The appointment of Sanjiv Kapoor — who has worked with multiple other airlines in the country — will help the airline attract more talent in other areas. This will also give credence to the Jet Airways story, which has been in the doldrums.”
Even the markets reacted well to Kapoor’s appointment. On Friday, Jet’s stock traded at ₹77.30 at the opening time and closed in green at ₹81.15.