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“I have watched Liverpool’s progress carefully in recent years and with Peel’s investment back into the airport I am very excited at being given the opportunity to now take the business forward.“ |
Andrew Cornish CEO Liverpool John Lennon Airport |
Liverpool John Lennon Airport (LJLA) has announced a change in leadership, with outgoing CEO Matthew Thomas taking up a senior position at the Vantage Airport Group, the previous owners of the airport. He will leave the post at the end of September.
Replacing Thomas will be Andrew Cornish who joins the airport with a wealth of experience in the aviation industry, having spent five years as Managing Director at Manchester Airport and more recently as Chief Customer and Brand Officer at Irish airline Aer Lingus.
LJLA handled over 4.2 million passengers in 2013 with flights to over 50 destinations in the UK and across Europe. The airport is said to be one of Merseyside’s major employers and a significant driver of the Liverpool City Region and the North West economy as a whole, bringing an estimated £300 million per annum and supporting 4,750 jobs in the region.
Thomas commented: “Working for Liverpool John Lennon Airport has been a tremendous experience for me and this was always going to be a difficult decision, but having overseen the recent change in ownership and the subsequent smooth transition into The Peel Group, this was a good time for me to pursue new challenges with Vantage Airport Group. The business is now in a great position to grow and I know that as I hand over the leadership to Andrew, the prospects for the airport are excellent.”
Cornish said: “I have watched Liverpool’s progress carefully in recent years and with Peel’s investment back into the airport I am very excited at being given the opportunity to now take the business forward. I am aware that much has been done by the staff at Liverpool to make it one of the UK’s best performing airports operationally. I am keen to build upon this reputation, to grow passenger numbers back to the levels seen prior to the recession and to give the people of the City Region an airport they can be proud of.”
Liverpool John Lennon Airport Chairman Robert Hough added: “Matthew has been instrumental in moving the company forward materially during his time in charge and I would like to thank him for all he has achieved. We are naturally sorry to see him leave. However I know the region will welcome Andrew in his new role as he uses his wealth of experience to help establish Liverpool as the airport of choice for passengers across the region.”
