Shannon Group has today confirmed that its CEO Neil Pakey is to leave the Company on the conclusion of his three-year contract next year.
The Group, which includes Shannon Airport, has confirmed that Mr Pakey will leave the Company at the end of his three-year contract next June.
The airport commenced operations as an autonomous entity, independent of the Dublin Airport Authority, on January 1st 2013 and the following May, the new company appointed Neil Pakey as its first CEO.
In his first year at Shannon, Mr Pakey presided over a 17% increase to 1.64m passengers mainly after Ryanair added new routes. while in March 2014 Shannon enjoyed it’s biggest week of new route start-ups in almost a decade.
Shannon Group Chairman Rose Hynes said: “Neil came on board as CEO at an exciting time for Shannon as it embarked on life as an independent entity and during his tenure many milestones have been achieved.
From an airport perspective we have returned Shannon to growth following five years of successive decline and by the end of 2015 passenger numbers will be up by 22% from where we started out. All of this happened with Neil Pakey as CEO, playing a key role in leading the team in the rebirth of Shannon as a catalyst for growth for the entire region,” Ms Hynes said.
“On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank Neil for this vital contribution to the revitalisation of Shannon Airport and formation of the wider group. He will leave in June with Shannon Group on a very positive footing, primed for growth, and we now embark on the task of appointing his successor,” she added.
Neil Pakey said: “I’ve worked with a great management team and a great Board and we’ve really transformed the Shannon Group during the past three years. We’ve put it on a sound financial and commercial footing, we’ve expanded operations, won new contracts, grown passenger and visitor numbers and won numerous awards.”
“I would like to thank the Board for having given me the opportunity as well as for their support during the last 3 years. There’s an exciting future ahead for the Group and I wish the Board well in recruiting a new CEO to carry on this work,” Mr Pakey added.