Doug Cameron
The lure of leading Olympic Airways out of trouble is proving too strong for some to resist; the Greek flag carrier will have been through two new chairmen before the end of January.
Unsatisfied with the many applicants for the chief executive's post, Olympic has combined the airline's top two jobs, bringing back Theodoros Tsakiridis as chairman and chief executive on 15 January 1998. Tsakiridis was director general from 1993-1995.
Tsakiridis replaces Emmanuel Fthenakis, who resigned on 9 January, just 10 days after the Greek parliament approved his appointment. Fthenakis was critical of government interference in the carrier's management.
Transport minister Tasos Mandelis opted to combine the two top jobs at Olympic after chief executive Jordan Karatzas resigned in December 1997. Karatzas had failed to win government support for his reappointment after the post was advertised in the international press last October. The unusual recruitment policy followed complaints by the European Commission that the Greek government was continuing to interfere in the carrier's management. The transport ministry said Karatzas failed to meet all the necessary requirements which, ironically, did not include airline management experience.
The Commission has taken a dim view of the latest, and there will be a further delay in the payment of Olympic's final GDr35 billion (US$122 million) tranche of state aid. Brussels has frozen this aid since opening a formal investigation in April 1996; the Greek authorities have not honoured last summer's pledge to end the interference.
Source: Airline Business
