EasyJet departures apart, buck ultimately stops with the chief executive
Not another unscheduled cancellation at easyJet. This time it’s the chief operating officer who is grounded, though the precise circumstances of Peter Bellew’s exit from the company were lost in the fog of corporate speak. He has quit “to pursue other business opportunities”, said the statement, without describing which opportunities.
Almost the only clear detail was that Bellew resigned on Friday. Since Monday morning at 7am, on the dot, would be the normal moment to inform shareholders, the other mini-mystery is why it took easyJet until 11.30am to do so. The corporate commitment to prompt communication needs work.
Bellew was hired from Ryanair amid much fanfare only two and half years ago, so you can understand why the stock market knocked another 4% off easyJet’s share price. An industry old-hand was assumed to be just the type of executive to restore order to operations after recent upsets. Instead, David Morgan, the director of flight operations, will “move seamlessly” into the role, said Johan Lundgren, the chief executive.
If a change of personnel makes the network run more smoothly this summer, nobody – least of all the punters – will grumble. One open question, though, is whether the switch is also an admission by easyJet that not all its woes can be blamed on Gatwick airport, air traffic controllers, labour shortages and general admin hassles. Operating conditions are tricky – no question. But Lundgren’s boasts in May about how easyJet had been “transformed” during the pandemic and had acquired “renewed strength” also read as grossly premature in light of events.
The other intriguing question is the role in the background of Stephen Hester, chair since last December. Hester – formerly of Royal Bank of Scotland and
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