Tim Morgan has resigned as executive vice-president of operations at Canada’s WestJet. The carrier has no immediate plans to replace him, so the three vice-presidents who formerly reported to Morgan will now report directly to chief executive Clive Beddoe.
Morgan was one of WestJet’s four founders in 1995, and the second of those four to leave. Mark Hill resigned last year because of his role in a dispute with Air Canada over corporate espionage. Clive Beddoe and Donald Bell, the two other founders, are still with the airline. Bell is executive vice-president of customer service.
Morgan, a former pilot for Canadian Regional, was responsible for WestJet’s leadership among low-cost carriers in embracing new technology in a number of fields. He developed and oversaw such key projects as the approval and installation of new navigation systems, LiveTV inflight entertainment and blended winglets on WestJet’s Boeing 737 New Generation fleet. He was also in charge of flight operations and maintenance.
Morgan’s resignation comes without warning. He cites personal reasons, but some observers speculate that he may have left because of disagreements over WestJet’s movement away from the traditional low-cost model .
DAVID KNIBB/SEATTLE
Source: Airline Business
