Bellew denies rumours of him rejoining Ryanair
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia Airlines Bhd ( MAB) managing director and chief executive officer ( CEO) Peter Bellew has quashed rumours that he would be rejoining Irish low- cost airline Ryanair Ltd.
Irish-born Bellew said that he has been in Malaysia for a long time and is proud to be part of the MAB transformation plan.
“I am proud to be part of MAB. The longer I’m here, the prouder I am to be in the job I am in.
“I am happy to be here and this will be the greatest achievement in my life if I could turn the airline around,” he said, adding that he did not expect to be appointed CEO when he came to Malaysia.
Founded in 1984, Ryanair Ltd is headquarters in Swords, Dublin.
Bellew spent a decade at Ryanair before joining Malaysia Airlines in late 2015, initially as chief operating officer before being promoted to CEO in mid 2016.
He held a wide range of positions during his tenure at Ryanair – including in operations, training, sales and marketing – getting ample exposure to Michael O’Leary’s unique approach to running an airline.
Bellew said Malaysia is the most wonderful country he has ever been to and regards Malaysians as similar to Irish.
“I was pretty fortunate to have the opportunity and I will do my level best and work as hard as I can to make things succeed,” he said.
Bellew was appointed Malaysia Airlines CEO on July 1, 2016, replacing Christopher Muller who left citing personal reasons.
MAB’s RM6.0 billion restructuring plan, which began in August 2014, is expected to be completed by 2020. — Bernama