The management board of the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has selected Florian Guillermet as its next executive director. The appointment, announced late on Wednesday, is subject to approval by the European Parliament in a process that is expected to be completed on Feb. 15, 2024.
Guillermet is currently the director of French air navigation service provider DSNA, having worked in air traffic management (ATM) for most of his 26-year aviation career. From 2014 to 2021, he was the executive director of the SESAR Joint Undertaking ATM agency. He joined the ATM agency from Eurocontrol, where he had served since 2004. Having graduated as an engineer from the Ecole Polytechnique with a master’s degree in air transport management and aeronautics, he had previously held roles at French air safety regulator DGCA and Air France.
Subject to confirmation, Guillermet will take over from EASA’s acting executive director Luc Tytgat, who succeeded Patrick Ky on September 1 when his 10-year mandate expired. The appointment process for the position—which is equivalent to that of the FAA Administrator—calls for Guillermet to make a presentation to the European Parliament’s Committee on Transport and Tourism on January 22. The start date for his new position is yet to be announced.
The agency, which is based in the German city of Cologne, is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, having assumed jurisdiction for all European Union member states. While aviation safety is its primary remit, EASA has increasingly directed attention to strengthening the environmental sustainability of air transport through initiatives such as the RefuelEU legislation on sustainable aviation fuel availability and use.
“EASA will have an instrumental role in accompanying the transition to greener aviation while maintaining the sector’s strong safety record,” Guillermet commented. “I look forward to steering the agency through these challenges and to building a positive, multicultural working environment on a basis of trust and transparency.”
At its meeting on December 13, EASA's management board also re-elected Piotr Samson as its chair. Having served as president of the Civil Aviation Agency of Poland, he has chaired the EASA board since 2019.