South African Airways has announced the departure of Interim Chief Commercial Officer, Simon Newton-Smith whose time at the national airline will come to an end at the end of August after his arrival only a year earlier. He will be replaced by Tebogo Tsimane who has served SAA for over 20 years in various other capacities.
Newton-Smith says, “My job was to support the team in restarting SAA, rebuilding market confidence and ensure that our passenger and cargo loads were maximized during a tough operating environment. I am very proud of what the Commercial team and our colleagues right across the business have achieved since our September 2021 restart. After a year leading the team and with the foundation set for the next chapter in SAA’s rebuild, now is the right time for me to hand the reigns to Tebogo.”
SAA’s Interim Chair and CEO Professor John Lamola says, “Simon has brought much needed stability to our commercial operation in the time he has been here, and he leaves with our appreciation and deep thanks. Tebogo has been with SAA for a number of years in various senior roles, has an exceptional understanding of the complexities of the new aviation operating environment and knows exactly what SAA needs to do to remain successful and profitable”.
