Cityjet’s new chief executive has pledged to return the loss-making carrier to profit before the Olympic Games start in London.
Christine Ourmieres, the former Air France country manager for both the UK and Ireland and United States, said her short-term objective was to improve the airline’s operational efficiency.
Speaking to ABTN at the World Travel Market in London, Ourmieres said she had been impressed by the work ethic and network in place at the Air France-KLM-owned airline.
But she said the 2007 acquisition of VLM left some processes within the business slightly fragmented, though she insisted it had been an important step in the growth of the network.
“The airline’s revenue has been strong over the recession, but we must now look for opportunities to make the business more efficient,” she said.
“The goal is to return the airline to profit by the end of the 2011/2012 financial year. There are signs that we are already on the way to achieving our objective.”
Ourmieres was an extremely popular trade figure in the UK before she left to take over the Air France-KLM country manager’s role in the USA in the third quarter of last year.
It was a surprise to many, therefore, when she returned to the chief executive’s position at Cityjet.
Though she has only been away from the UK market for little over a year, she said there had been some noticeable changes.
“When I left for the US the economy was already in crisis. But now that I am back I have noticed that the way in which people communicate and do business has evolved.
"People are trying to be more creative. They are starting to listen again. No longer can people assume that the status quo will prevail because crises make people realise that nothing can be taken for granted.
"So, in some respects the crisis has been good because its positive impact on how we do business.”
She said the economic environment in Europe was improving, but that doing business on this side of the Atlantic presented more challenges that working in the US.
“The US and European markets have very different dynamics. Though each state in America has its own character, the economy is harmony across the nation. In Europe, each individual country has a very distinct culture, economy and way of doing business.
“The US economy, therefore, has shown itself to be more flexible and has therefore enjoyed a quicker return to growth.
“Cityjet’s main markets are the UK, Ireland, Holland and France – each of these present unique challenges.”
Cityjet recently announced it is starting a London City – Florence service in the new year.
Ourmieres reports into the Cityjet board and Air France’s executive vice-president Bruno Matheu.
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