Gallery: MRO Industry Leadership Moves In 2026

ST Engineering appointed Jeffrey Lam as group deputy CEO on June 1. Lam was previously group chief operating officer and president of commercial aerospace, and he holds more than 20 years of experience in the aerospace industry. He will continue to report to Group President and CEO Vincent Chong and remain a member of the Group Executive Committee. 

StandardAero announced that its board of directors has appointed Paul McElhinney as CEO, effective Oct. 1. He succeeds Russell Ford, who is retiring but will continue to serve on the company’s board of directors. McElhinney comes to StandardAero from AE Industrial Partners, where he served as senior operating partner and co-head of the portfolio strategy and optimization group. He previously held various leadership roles over a 30-year career at General Electric.

Rolls-Royce named Maria Deacon as head of commercial aftermarket operations in late April. Deacon was most recently senior vice president of technical operations at United Airlines, and she previously spent more than 20 years rising through the ranks at GE Aerospace, culminating with her appointment as MRO global supply chain vice president. She succeeds Paul Keenan, who recently took on the role of Rolls-Royce’s director of manufacturing engineering and materials.

AFI KLM E&M made several new management appointments in March. Vincent d’Andrea (top left) became executive vice president of Air France Industries in May. He began his career at Air France in 1998 and was most recently senior vice president of engineering and airframe maintenance at AFI KLM E&M. Gilles Mercier (top right), CEO of Barfield, will take over d’Andrea’s previous role of senior vice president of engineering and airframe maintenance in July. Tommaso Auriemma (bottom left) will become CEO of Barfield in July. He has more than 26 years of MRO industry experience, most recently holding the role of AFI KLKM E&M’s vice president of sales for the Asia-Pacific region. Magali Jobert (bottom right) will take over Auriemma’s role, transitioning from her position as vice president of component asset management and aerostructure product at AFI KLM E&M.

In April, AFI KLM E&M announced Benoît Rollier as its new vice president of KLM Engine Services. Rollier was most recently vice president of engineering for KLM and CEO and managing director of Spairliners. He succeeds Martijn de Vries, who became senior vice president of commercial April 1.

Ontic appointed Jean-Christophe Gallagher as its new CEO in mid-May. He comes to the company after 20 years at Bombardier, most recently serving as executive vice president of aircraft sales and defense. Gallagher succeeds Gareth Hall, who transitioned from CEO to executive chairman.

Ascent Aviation Services appointed Tim McGuire (left) to the expanded role of president and chief operating officer in late May. McGuire has been COO for 4 years and has more than 20 years of experience in the aviation industry, previously serving in leadership roles at MHIRJ and Bombardier. Ascent also promoted Kyle Olson (right) to senior director of global MRO business development in June. Olson was most recently vice president of sales and has over 20 years of aviation industry experience, holding leadership roles at companies including TAT Technologies, Aero Accessories and GA Telesis.

Vytautas Jankauskas became CEO of FL Technics Wheels and Brakes in March. He has more than a decade of experience with global aviation training provider BAA Training, most recently serving as CEO of BAA Training Vietnam. Jankauskas says he will contribute to the company’s growth and strengthen its European MRO footprint as it expands its workshop network across the continent.

FL Technics subsidiary Job Air Technic appointed Jakub Dvořák as CEO on May 1. He has more than 18 years of MRO experience, most recently serving as the company’s technical director and a member of its management board. He succeeds Imrich Czére, who transitioned to CEO of VÝVOJ Martin, a Slovakian manufacturer of defense and space equipment.

AJW Group appointed Mark McConnell (left) as business development manager for Europe in mid-May, where he will work to strengthen its market presence in the region. He has more than 40 years of experience in various aerospace and manufacturing roles, including more than 31 years at Bombardier. AJW Group also appointed Christoffer Creutz (right) as chief commercial officer of AJW Middle East. Creutz has more than 25 years of senior aviation experience, most recently serving as chief commercial officer at DTX Aerospace.

Launch Technical Workforce Solutions appointed Archie Vega as vice president of MRO services in Mid-May. Vega has more than four decades of MRO experience, most recently serving as director of line maintenance and planning at Horizon Air after holding maintenance roles at JetBlue Airways and United Airlines. He will be based at Launch’s Modification and Training Center in Wichita, Kansas.

Dirk Hanenberg was appointed chief operating officer at TP Aerospace in April. Hanenberg was previously managing director at Fokker Services Group and holds more than 15 years of experience in MRO and component services. He succeeds Felix Ammann, who stepped down at the end of March to focus on consulting services and other non-executive engagements.

BeauTech Power Systems appointed Lee Whitehurst as vice president of acquisitions and trading in mid-May. Whitehurst was most recently commercial director at GE Aerospace, where he led the global trading and leasing teams. He spent more than 10 years with the engine manufacturer and has also previously held various trading, leasing and sales roles at TES Aviation Group.

Lufthansa Technik Portugal appointed Torsten Raabe as managing director. Raabe has more than three decades of experience across the Lufthansa Technik Group, including most recently serving as senior director of MRO services at Lufthansa Technik Component Services and as CEO of Lufthansa Technik Sofia. 

ProvenAir Technologies, an aerospace industry software company specialized in back-to-birth parts tracing, has appointed Chris Kubinski as CEO. He has more than two decades of experience in aviation software, most recently serving as vice president of worldwide sales at Corridor Aviation Service Software. He succeeds the late Jim Boccarossa, who passed away last year.

Setna iO has appointed David McDonagh as its new chief technical officer. McDonagh joined the company in 2024, building its technical team, establishing it as a dedicated department and leading the opening of Setna’s first office in Shannon, Ireland. Prior to joining Setna, he was vice president of technical at Jackson Square Aviation.

EgyptAir Maintenance & Engineering has appointed Mohamed Samy (pictured left) as its new chairman and CEO, succeeding Ibrahim Fathy. Samy was most recently vice chairman at the company, where he focused on Egyptair M&E’s long-term modernization roadmap and digital transformation initiatives. Egyptair M&E has also appointed Alaa Shoukry (pictured right) as vice chairman. Shoukry has held several leadership positions at the company, including scheduled maintenance and contracting director and base maintenance director.

Martijn de Vries will become senior vice president of commercial at Air France Industries KLM Engineering & Maintenance (AFI KLM E&M) April 1. He succeeds Pierre Teboul, who is retiring. De Vries was most recently managing director of AFI KLM E&M subsidiary Epcor and previously held roles at KLM Engine Services and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines.

PSA Airlines has appointed two new senior leaders to its tech ops organization. Ken Brumfield (pictured left) has been appointed vice president of technical operations. Brumfield was most recently vice president of operations and vice president of quality at ST Engineering, and he previously worked in leadership and maintenance roles at Allegiant and Southwest Airlines. Matthew Key (pictured right) has been appointed to the new role of vice president of technical operations strategy and sourcing. Key previously spent 13 years at Allegiant in leadership roles such as director of maintenance planning and strategy and director of aircraft heavy maintenance.

HAECO Group has appointed Tom Owen as group director of corporate development, where he will handle shaping the company’s strategic direction, lead digital transformation and sustainability initiatives, and cultivate stakeholder relationships. Owen has more than 30 years of experience in aviation, most recently serving as director of cargo at Cathay Cargo.

Haijun Jiang has been appointed general manager of HAECO Composite Services. He has more than 20 years of aerospace industry experience, most recently serving as regional business director at Parker Hannifin. He has also held roles at Honeywell and Guangzhou Aircraft Maintenance Engineering Co.

AvAir appointed two new leaders at the beginning of 2026. Tyler Botthof (pictured left) was promoted to chief operating officer after more than 24 years with the company. He was most recently vice president of operations. AvAir also promoted Zach Hall (pictured right) to senior vice president of commercial. Hall was previously vice president of business development and has held multiple roles at the company since 2018.

GA Telesis has appointed Elias Dimitiri as vice president of Sub-Saharan Africa for its Flight Solutions Group. His role expands the company’s presence to its sixth global operating region as part of plans to establish full operating and distribution capabilities across Africa. Dimitiri spent more than 30 years at Ethiopian Airlines, most recently serving as director of fleet and network planning.

APOC Aviation has appointed Carlos Miguel Branco Sandels as business development manager, where he will focus on expanding the company’s commercial footprint across Europe. Sandels has more than 15 years of sales and business development experience across various industries, most recently working at Touchdown Aviation.

Aircraft dent-mapping technology specialist 8tree has promoted Pia Böttcher (pictured left) and Leonard Buck (pictured right) to managing director roles for its Germany operations to support its long-term growth trajectory. Böttcher also serves as chief operations officer at 8tree Germany. Buck, who was previously marketing and business development manager, will oversee the company’s commercial strategy and customer engagement.