IAG’s Willie Walsh To Step Down as Chief Executive

Willie Walsh will resign as CEO of IAG, a company he helped build into one of Europe’s most profitable and diverse airline groups. Walsh, a former Aer Lingus pilot and chief executive, became CEO of British Airways in October 2005 and chief executive of now parent company IAG in January 2011. He will step down from his role and leave the board on March 26 and plans to retire completely on June 30, IAG announced Thursday.

His resignation comes not completely unexpectedly. Walsh already indicated late last year he planned to retire before his 60th birthday, on October 25, 2021. “I still love what I do, but my intention is to be retired within the next two years,” he told analysts at IAG’s capital markets day in November.

“Under Willie’s leadership IAG has become one of the leading global airline groups,” noted IAG chairman Antonio Vázquez. “[Walsh] has been the main driver of this unique idea that is IAG. I hugely admire his commitment, strong leadership, and clear vision, always ready to take on whatever challenges lay ahead of him. I am deeply respectful of what he has achieved as CEO of this group, of his sense of fairness, his transparency, and his capacity to integrate people regardless of nationalities or backgrounds.”

IAG looked internally for a successor and named Spanish national Luis Gallego as IAG CEO as the group’s Spanish operations are set to take an increasing weight in the company. IAG already owns Madrid-based network carrier Iberia and its lower-cost subsidiary Iberia Express and Barcelona-based LCC Vueling. The group in November announced it had reached an agreement with Spain’s privately held tourism conglomerate Globalia to acquire its airline subsidiary Air Europa for €1 billion. At that time Walsh earmarked Gallego to lead the integration of Air Europa as a standalone profit center within Iberia.  

Gallego started his career in the airline industry in 1997 with Air Nostrum, which operates as a franchise partner of Iberia under the Iberia Regional brand. He moved on to Vueling, became CEO of Iberia Express in 2012, and a year later assumed the chief executive’s post at Iberia, where he drove the airline’s major turnaround. “Luis has been a core member of the team and has shown true leadership over the years and I have no doubt he will be a great CEO of IAG,” said Walsh.