Menzies completes leadership team as new chiefs wing in

● Formation of executive management board latest development at capital firm

John Menzies, the Edinburghheadquartered global aviation services group, has completed its top team after naming its new financial and operating chiefs.

The group has appointed Alvaro Gomez-reino as chief financial officer. Mervyn Walker, meanwhile, has been promoted to the role of chief operating officer.

Menzies said the twin appointments completed its senior leadership team, allowing it to create an executive management board, chaired by Philipp Joeinig.

The firm became a pure aviation business after selling its newsprint distribution division to a private equity firm.

Half-year results for the six months to the end of June, released in August, showed that the group suffered a pretax loss of £4.4 million, from a profit of £8.3m a year earlier. That was despite reported revenues rising to £649.9m from £627.2m.

The losses were blamed in part on cuts in flight schedules because of the global grounding of Boeing’s 737 MAX jets in the wake of two fatal crashes.

However, Menzies, which is one of Scotland’s oldest companies, dating back to 1833, has since secured a string of contract wins and renewals at airports including Edinburgh and Glasgow.

The firm noted that its new chief financial officer had “significant financial experience” gained through a career that has involved senior positions with Amey, Ferrovial and Swissport International, where he also held the post of chief financial officer.

Joeinig, whose appointment as chairman was revealed in July, is seen as an industry high-flyer, having held a number of senior executive roles in Swissport. Last month he snapped up £4.7m worth of shares in Menzies.

Gomez-reino is due to take up his role at the capital group and join the board of directors on 1 December.

The other members of the top team are chief executive Giles Wilson, corporate affairs director John Geddes and executive vice president of people Claire Hall.

Commenting on Walker’s appointment, the firm said: “We are also delighted to recognise the significant impact Mervyn Walker makes to our day-to-day operations and with immediate effect he is promoted to chief operating officer.”

At the start of this month, Menzies said it had secured a number of contract wins and renewals.

It has agreed a three-year deal with Lufthansa at Glasgow Airport, with the group delivering passenger, ramp and de-icing services for Germany’s largest airline.

The firm has also landed a new five-year seasonal contract with United Airlines at Glasgow, which will see it provide passenger and ramp services from March 2020, when the US airline’s summer schedule kicks in.

At Edinburgh Airport, Swiss airline Edelweiss Air has selected Menzies as its “ground handler of choice”, starting from November.