Philip Saunders appointed Chief Commercial Officer at Air Malta

Saunders will be responsible for leading all commercial activity on a day-to-day basis and spearheading Air Malta’s restructuring in these areas.

The cabin service and ground handling departments will now form part of the commercial department, in line with Air Malta’s vision to deliver consistently excellent service, tailored to the needs of the Maltese market and meeting the airline’s commercial objectives.

The commercial department also includes sales and marketing, distribution and e-business, revenue management, network planning and commercial agreements.

Philip Saunders joins Air Malta with a strong track record built up over 20 years in the industry, with significant experience in turnaround situations.

Most recently, Saunders held the position of CEO at Caribbean Airlines, where he delivered a sustained transformation of the customer experience and achieved profitability one year ahead of plan.

Previous roles include commercial director at Star Alliance, delivering commercial advantage for the member carriers forming the world’s largest and most successful airline alliance. As executive vice-president commercial at SN Brussels Airlines, Philip worked closely with Peter Davies in establishing an effective commercial and operational platform following the collapse of Sabena, and in creating a profitable business against market expectations.

He also served in several senior positions at British Airways over 13 years, including management roles in Russia and Switzerland, as well as commercial director at Deutsche BA, a subsidiary airline based in Germany.

Peter Davies, CEO at Air Malta, said: “This appointment represents another important step in our plans to turnaround Air Malta. Philip brings in-depth knowledge of the international airline business and will be responsible for defining the airline’s commercial strategy by making Air Malta more customer centric. I am confident that he is the ideal candidate to lead change in our commercial division and to generate new revenue streams for the airline.”

On taking up his appointment, Saunders stated: “I am looking forward to facing the challenges ahead here at Air Malta and am certain that, together with my team, we can create a positive future for the airline, our staff and customers. Our new model will support the continued development of tourism and incentive travel to the islands, and recognise the specific needs of our Maltese customers.”