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Gulf Air CEO Bjorn Naf is leaving the airline to “pursue other interests”, it was announced on Thursday.
The Swiss executive will leave the post soon, making way for Samer Majali, who himself resigned as CEO of Royal Jordanian Airlines days prior to this unexpected announcement.
In the interim, Gulf Air chairman Talal Al Zain will manage the carrier temporarily as executive chairman until Majali takes charge.
When contacted by Arabian Business, a Gulf Air spokesperson declined to elaborate on the reasons for Naf’s departure.
Since taking charge of Bahrain’s national carrier in 2007, Naf has been heavily criticised by politicians claiming he was failing to resurrect the ailing airline. His job involved cutting costs, routes and employee numbers to stem $1m daily losses.
“On behalf of the board, I would like to thank Björn Näf for his leadership over the last two years and we wish him well in his future endeavors,” Al Zain said.
“Moving forward, we have important plans for the future of Gulf Air and we believe Samer is the right leader to take the airline forward as we move into the next phase of our strategy to rebuild the business.”
He added Majali was an ideal appointment following his work at Royal Jordanian. During his tenure, the carrier secured membership to airline alliance oneworld, and carried out a privatisation.
Majali also served as chairman of the International Air Transport Association and president of the Arab Air Carriers Organisation.
