Ronojoy Dutta, the chief executive officer of IndiGo, will retire in September, the private carrier announced on May 18, further stating that Pieter Elbers has been finalised as his successor.
Dutta, 71, was appointed at the helm of IndiGo in January 2019. He has "decided to retire on September 30, 2022", after guiding IndiGo "through the turbulent Covid period", said a statement issued by the airline.
The board of directors of InterGlobe Aviation Limited, the carrier's parent firm, have "appointed Pieter Elbers as the next chief executive officer, subject to regulatory approvals", it added.
Elbers, who has served as the chief executive of KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, will join IndiGo "on or before October 1, 2022", the statement noted.
Dutta, while commenting on his decision to step down, said IndiGo is in the "good custody of Mr Elbers" and that the future for IndiGo employees is "secure and bright".
"I would like to thank all the employees at IndiGo for the kindness and affection they have shown me over the past four years. As I move forward to the next chapter of my life, I will look back with nostalgia, fondness, and a tinge of separation regret," he added.
Elbers, his successor, is a Dutch national who has been at the helm of KLM since 2014. The 52-year-old is also a member of the executive committee of the Air France – KLM Group.
He started his career in 1992 with KLM and, over the past three decades, held several managerial positions in the company in both the Netherlands and overseas in Japan, Greece and Italy.
On his appointment as the next IndiGo CEO, Elbers said, "What IndiGo’s employees and leadership have jointly built, since its start 16 years ago, is, by any standard, truly impressive. I am very honoured and do look forward to build upon this, working together with the entire IndiGo team. I am delighted to become a part of the next stage of IndiGo’s incredible journey, further fulfilling the vision of what the airline can do and will be for its customers and India."
IndiGo Managing Director Rahul Bhatia said Elbers' appointment is aimed at further boosting the prospects of IndiGo, which is India's largest airline in terms of operations.
"India promises to be the last bastion of ginormous growth globally and given Mr. Elbers’ deep understanding of the business, his legendary leadership qualities coupled with his energy and passion, we are ever so confident that under his stewardship, IndiGo will play a pivotal role in this growth opportunity," he said.
The announcement of Elber as Dutta's successor was made by IndiGo before declaring its financial results for the fourth quarter of previous fiscal. The release of the quarterly performance numbers has been postponed by the company till the next week.
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