Transat AT, parent of Canadian leisure carrier Air Transat, has appointed Sebastian Ponce as chief revenue officer as it continues searching for profitability.
Ponce is now responsible for the Montreal-headquartered company’s “network development strategy, revenue management and airline alliance development”, Transat said on 18 March.
He has been with Transat since 2018, following a 10-year stint with Air France. Most recently, he worked as vice-president of network planning and alliances, a role in which he oversaw the new joint venture between Transat and Toronto-based Porter Airlines.
“With his team, he was instrumental in redefining Transat’s network and alliance strategy and in setting up the alliances department, responsible for developing and maintaining airline partnerships,” Transat says. “He has also spearheaded numerous inter-carrier partnership agreements, including the recent commercial joint venture with Porter Airlines, a first in the company’s history.”
Ponce told FlightGlobal in November that the joint venture – which is being implemented gradually throughout this year – builds off the carriers’ respective strengths.
“It’s about developing a competitive network, expanding our footprint – especially on the transatlantic market – and growing those markets thanks to the feeding of Porter,” Ponce said. “The idea is that by combining forces together, we can concentrate on what we do best.”
In addition to the Porter deal, Transat credits Ponce with orchestrating in his previous role “a dozen interline agreements” with European and Latin American carriers.
“Sebastian joined Transat as part of its strategic transformation with the objective of defining our network for years to come,” says chief executive Annick Guerard. “He has a strong track record and has demonstrated great potential in a number of ways. I am confident that he is the right person to continue implementing our growth strategy over the next few years.”
Transat has struggled to find profitability following the Covid-19 pandemic. The company recently reported losing C$61 million ($45 million) during its fiscal first quarter ending 31 January, compared with a C$57 million loss during the equivalent prior-year period.
It attributed its quarterly loss to Pratt & Whitney geared turbofan (GTF) engine issues and ”persistent speculations throughout the quarter about a potential strike by our flight attendants that led to a decline in airline unit revenues that was greater than the decrease in unit costs”.
Transat’s quarterly revenue increased nearly 18% year on year, to C$785 million in the fiscal first quarter.
