A former London City airport chief commercial officer is to run George Best Belfast City airport.
Matthew Hall takes over as chief executive on August 1 from long standing boss Brian Ambrose, who retires this summer.
Hall’s previous experience also includes executive roles at American Airlines, where he was EMEA sales and marketing managing director, and vice president at Travelport.
The Northern Ireland airport is owned by 3i Investments and handled 2.5 million passengers prior to the pandemic in 2019.
The airport has attracted new airlines and routes in recent months, and will serve to 26 destinations this summer with airline partners Aer Lingus, British Airways, Eastern Airways, Loganair, KLM, Ryanair and Vueling.
Chairman Declan Collier said: “We are delighted that Matthew will come to Belfast City airport to lead the post Covid-19 restart and recovery and to enhance the airport’s position within the UK market.
“Matthew’s extensive experience within the aviation sector and, in particular, his knowledge of developing and commercialising a similar city centre airport, will be hugely valuable to Belfast City airport.”
Hall added: “I very much look forward to joining the highly experienced management team at Belfast City airport. It is a crucial time in the aviation industry as travel resumes post-pandemic, and the airport has a pivotal role to play in supporting the Northern Ireland economy at this time.”