His first challenges are to consolidate the airline’s extraordinary financial and operational results, complete the purchase of Air Europa, and ensure the competitiveness of the company’s handling operation – through a new company – and maintenance businesses.
Marco Sansavini is taking over from Fernando Candela as president of Iberia. “Fernando Candela had to deal with very important issues, and he handled them with great success, along with the entire team. This has allowed Iberia to achieve the best results in its history in 2023,” says Sansavini.
The company announced record results of 940 million euros last year and consolidated its operational excellence, both in the customer satisfaction index (NPS) and in terms of punctuality.
For the new president of Iberia, this shows that “the transformation that began with Luis Gallego more than ten years ago is bearing fruit.”
The second challenge faced by Sansavini is, he says, “to elevate Madrid to the level of the hubs of northern Europe, getting Spain and Iberia to be part of the Champions’ League of aviation. This can only be achieved by a strong airline that can connect Spain with many more destinations, hence the vital importance of the Air Europa purchase operation.”
IAG and Iberia, he says, have made “a very ambitious offer to guarantee competition on the routes where we operate and we trust that the European Commission will approve the operation, which is key for the connectivity of the Madrid hub, for consumers, employment and tourism, and the Spanish economy.”
As the third notable challenge, Iberia’s new president is focused on “ensuring the competitiveness and future development of the handling – for which IAG is creating a new company – and maintenance business.”
Sansavini begins his mandate with “a great deal of confidence in the future.” He believes that Iberia will overcome all its challenges thanks to the enormous professionalism and spirit of the company’s team and all those who make it up, which is based on passion and soul, as seen in the daily work of our ground teams, our cabin crews and our pilots, an unbeatable reference in the industry. Together, they have made it possible for Iberia to get to where it is,” he points out.
“This cohesive action,” highlights the new president, “has been the key to Iberia’s success in recent years. That is why I want to make it clear from my first day at the head of the company that Iberia will always rigorously comply with the agreements reached with the representatives of its workers, in all sectors, and will make every effort to consolidate social peace through common sense, a fundamental pillar of its transformation in the last eleven years.”
The First Changes of This New Stage
Sansavini announced the new Iberia Management Committee, where he has made changes to better face the company’s next challenges. The new committee is made up of:
- Rafael Jiménez Hoyos: Production Director
- María Jesús López Solás: Commercial, Network Development, Alliances and Clients Director
- Gabriel Perdiguero: Finance, Transformation and Technology Director
- Juan Cierco: Corporate Director
- José Luis de Luna: Labour Relations, Legal and Human Resources Management Director
- Maria Bello: People and Diversity Director
- Enrique Robledo: Maintenance Director
The Airport Management Department will have a presence in the Management Committee under the leadership of José Luis de Luna until the creation of the new company.
The previous Financial Director, Elena Baillo, was appointed to cover Fernando Candela’s tenure and returns, after doing an excellent job, to her previous position as Financial Director of Iberia Express.
A Company Man with A Long Career in Aviation
Marco Sansavini returns to Iberia, where for eight years, between 2012 and 2020, he was Commercial Director. He was part of the team that, led by Luis Gallego, designed and carried out the successful transformation of the company.
In 2020 he was appointed CEO of Vueling, another of the IAG Group airlines. There, he strengthened Vueling with a transformation process that turned it into one of the best low-cost companies in Europe.
Marco Sansavini’s career in the aviation sector began in 1995, when he joined KLM. He held various management positions and participated in its merger process with Air France. In 2004 he joined Air France-KLM as vice-president of Global Business and carried out various roles at the group and its subsidiary, Alitalia, until 2012.
He has a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Bologna and a master’s degree in business administration from the IMD in Lausanne. His long professional career has allowed him to live in Milan, Rome, Zurich, Amsterdam, Paris, Madrid, and Barcelona.
Marco Sansavini was born in Bologna. He is married and has three children.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
