Wolfgang Prock-Schauer quits as CEO of Jet Airways; Nikos Kardassis returns as acting CEO

Wolfgang Prock-Schauer is resigning as the chief executive officer of Jet Airways, the airline based in Mumbai, India. The resignation will take effect on October 15, 2009.

Nikos Kardassis, who is currently senior vice-president of Jet Airways’ North American operations, will take over as the acting chief executive for the next six months. He also will also act as senior advisor to the chairman for corporate strategy and finance, the airline said in a statement.

Kardassis was the CEO of Jet Airways from 1993 to 1999.

In June 2003, Wolfgang Prock-Schauer took over as the CEO of Jet Airways, which is the biggest private-sector airline in India in terms of passenger traffic.

A section of the media quoted a senior executive of Jet Airways as saying that Wolfgang Prock-Schauer’s contract with the airline expires at the end of October 2009 and he does not wish to extend the contract. Prock-Schauer, the executive added, would take up a job with a Europe-based airline.

Before taking over as the chief executive officer of Jet Airways in June 2003, Prock-Schauer, an Austrian national, was the executive vice-president (network management and alliances) of Austrian Airlines. He also served as chairman of the alliance management board of Star Alliance, the biggest grouping of global airlines.

Meanwhile, the website telegraph.co.uk has reported that the Britain-based airline bmi has appointed Wolfgang Prock-Schauer as its new chief executive.

Lufthansa, the flag-carrier airline of Germany, which now owns the loss-making bmi, appointed Prock-Schauer as the new chief executive as a part of a wider management shake-up, the website said.

Prock-Schauer will replace Nigel Turner, who has been with bmi for 22 years and has been the CEO for the last 5 years.

According to the website telegraph.co.uk, Prock-Schauer will join bmi as its as deputy chief executive on November 1, 2009, and will become the CEO a month afterwards.