Meet our speakers...

Richard Adelung VP, Business Development LSG Sky Chefs

Richard Adelung has held the position of Vice President of Business Development for LSG Sky Chefs since 2005.  In this position Richard has been responsible for developing business opportunities outside the traditional airline catering for LSG.  Richard prior role for LSG was Vice President of Buy on Board in which he was directly responsible for the Buy on Board product portfolio.  He has been with LSG Sky Chefs since 1999 hand has held a variety of Operational and Staff function roles within the organization.

Ben Baldanza CEO and President Spirit Airlines

B. Ben Baldanza assumed the position of Chief Executive Officer and President of Spirit Airlines in May 2006. He joined Spirit in January 2005 as President and Chief Operating Officer. Baldanza formerly served as Senior Vice President of Marketing and Planning at US Airways where he was responsible for route planning, scheduling, pricing and revenue management, marketing, sales, cargo, distribution, and the international division. Prior to US Airways, Baldanza served as Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer of Grupo Taca. Baldanza previously held positions at Continental Airlines, where he was Executive Vice President Marketing, Northwest Airlines, and American Airlines. Baldanza holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics from Syracuse University and a Master of Public Affairs, specializing in transportation and economics, from Princeton University.

David Barger CEO JetBlue

JetBlue began operations in February, 2000 from its base at New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport and now, eight years later, serves 53 destinations across the U.S and the Caribbean. At the end of 2007, JetBlue operated a fleet of 104 Airbus A320 aircraft and 30 EMBRAER 190 aircraft. As Chief Executive Officer, David (Dave) Barger leads JetBlue’s charge to bring humanity back to air travel and to establish JetBlue as a new standard in the airline industry for service, performance and innovation.   Dave joined JetBlue in August 1998 as President and Chief Operating Officer after 18 years with Continental Airlines and New York Air, before the two airlines merged. At Continental, he was one of the 38 officers of the company and the Vice President for the Newark Hub Operation, the largest airport operation in the New York area, handling more than 50,000 passengers and 800 flight movements each day.   While at Newark, Dave was also the Chairman of the Regional Business Partnership (Chamber of Commerce for the metropolitan Newark region); a board member and executive member of Prosperity New Jersey, a public/private partnership established by the Governor; a board member of the State Chamber of Commerce in Trenton; a board member of the Newark Economic Development Corporation; a board member on the Governor’s Panel of Higher Education in the State of New Jersey; and a trustee for the Newark Museum.   Dave’s educational background includes studies at the University of Michigan where he majored in Economics and Political Science.   JetBlue was recently ranked Top Low Cost Airline for Customer Satisfaction by J.D. Power and Associates and was also ranked Best U.S. Airline by Consumer Reports.

Barry Biffle CMO Spirit Airlines

Barry L. Biffle joined Spirit Airlines in February 2005 as Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer, bringing with him an extensive background in all areas of marketing.  Prior to joining Spirit, he served as Managing Director of Marketing at US Airways where he was responsible for overseeing the airline’s advertising, direct marketing, frequent flyer program and product.  Biffle also held other senior management positions at US Airways in the areas of planning, marketing and sales. Prior to US Airways, Biffle held management positions at American Eagle Airlines. Biffle holds a Bachelor Degree from the University of Alabama.

Jose Calderoni Director Marketing Volaris

Jose Calderoni is one of the founders of Volaris, a Low Cost Carrier in Mexico that started operations in March 2006. Currently he is Director of Marketing in charge of advertising, public relations, market intelligence, sponsorships and promotions and the e-commerce strategy for the airline. Recent accomplishments have been to position the Volaris brand in 3rd place among 11 airlines (5 new LCC´s) and direct sales account for 81% of total sales. Prior to Volaris Mr. Calderoni worked 8 years for TACA Airlines in El Salvador where he held different positions in the Commercial area. He has a bachelor degree in Marketing from Tec of Monterrey and a Masters degree in International Management from Thunderbird in Phoenix, AZ.

Brian Cimaglia VP, Airline Information Technology Air Transportation Business Development Group

Brian Cimaglia has more than 17 years of experience in international airline business consulting, strategic technology application and software development. He has held senior positions in the airline industry and information technology industry, managing global implementation and development, including extensive experience with new business ventures. Prior to founding fareENOUGH, Cimaglia led the reservations line of business for a major airlines services provider. His client roster included low-cost/low-fare successes JetBlue, AirTran, Ryanair, Virgin Blue, bmiBaby, WestJet, Gol and Air Asia. Under his direction, the business achieved annual growth exceeding 100 percent. Previously, Cimaglia established and led the travel practice for a global professional services firm, contributing over US$20 million annually to top line revenues. In addition, he worked with several large legacy carriers providing Web development, Web hosting and business process reengineering, as well as technology strategies for several large reservations systems. He has significant experience migrating reservations systems to newer networking protocols. Additional customers include United, Lufthansa, Continental, America West, Cathay Pacific, Sabre, Galileo, Amadeus, Qantas, EDS, Mexicana, and AeroMexico. Cimaglia and holds a B.S. in Computational Mathematics from Arizona State University and currently resides in Phoenix, Arizona.

Bob Dana CFO Virgin America

Bob Dana is responsible for all financial and strategic planning functions for Virgin America, and also oversees the IT function. To date, Bob has arranged for nearly $1 billion in aircraft financing, led the negotiation team that successfully completed the acquisition of the largest aircraft purchase agreement ever obtained for a "green field" start-up airline, assisted in arranging equity financing from U.S. investors, and been closely involved with Virgin America's cutting edge IT infrastructure. Prior to joining the Virgin team, Bob worked as an investment banker for more than 16 years with US Bancorp Piper Jaffray and Credit Suisse First Boston (CSFB). In 2000, he launched the semiconductor investment banking practice for US Bancorp Piper Jaffray, working from offices in New York City and Menlo Park, Calif., and building a team of six bankers. During his 13 years at CSFB, Bob focused exclusively on the aviation industry, covering airlines, airfreight, aerospace and other transportation accounts and completing nearly $50 billion in transactions. From 1995 to 2000, Bob managed the firm's U.S. airline practice. His primary focus was mergers and acquisitions, and he advised airlines such as United, American, Northwest, and US Airways. His international experience included privatizations and cross-border alliances for US Airways, Qantas, Swissair, Air New Zealand, Malev Hungarian Airlines, THY Turkish Airlines and Thai Airways. Between 1992 and 1995, Bob served as a Vice President in CSFB's Transportation Group, where he advised US Airways in its British Airways strategic alliance and the Board of UAL Corporation on its employee buyout. He also directed a lead-managed common stock offering for US Airways. At Virgin America, his main focus will be to ensure the company's liquidity and lead its efforts to maintain low costs and high efficiency without compromising on value and service for our guests.

Catherine Dyer VP, Distribution WestJet Airlines

Catherine Dyer, became WestJet’s Vice-President of Distribution in January 2008, having previously held the role of Director of Guest Services. As Vice-President of Distribution, Catherine oversees the day-to-day operations and strategic direction of 600 people, making up WestJet’s Reservations Call Centre, Global Distribution System (GDS) and Web Business team.Catherine’s teams work to provide consistent focus and exceptional guest experience through all channels. Under Catherine’s leadership, the Reservations Call Centre was awarded the 2006 Best Canadian Airline Call Centre in a survey by Canadian Business Magazine.Before WestJet, Catherine held a variety of position’s at TELUS Communications including work in Customer Service, Customer Relations, Technical Operations and Sales. Born in Kitchener Ontario, Catherine has spent most of her life in the West. She is a University of Alberta alumni and completed her MBA through Athabasca University. She is an equestrian enthusiast and loves to spend time outside with her two children. Her favourite WestJet destination is Calgary (home).

Ed Faberman Co-Chairman, Aviation Counsel Wiley Rein

Ed Faberman is the Executive Director of the Air Carrier Association of America, which includes new entrant carriers, start-up carriers and small and medium communities.  The carrier members of ACAA include AirTran Airways, Frontier Airlines, Spirit Airlines, and MN Airlines d/b/a Sun Country Airlines.  He represents the Association and its members before DOT, DHS, DOJ, TSA, FAA, and Congress.Ed’s career began in 1970 with the Federal Aviation Administration.  His 17 years with the FAA included five years as Deputy Chief Counsel and five years as Assistant Chief Counsel for Regulation and Enforcement.  During that time he managed the Agency’s regulatory and enforcement program, environmental issues, created and managed the Department’s airport access programs and high density regulations.  He also managed the rebuilding of the air traffic system after the air controllers’ strike.  As a result of those efforts, he was given a Presidential Award by President Reagan.  He later managed the Department of Transportation’s air carrier rescheduling programs at major airports throughout the country. Ed also received an award in 1979 from the Administrator for his work investigating the American Airlines DC-10 accident.  In 2003, Ed received the Partnership Award from TSA.Ed has testified before a number of Congressional Committees on various topics relating to airline competition, mergers and aviation fees.After he left the FAA in 1988, Ed spent eight years with American Airlines as Assistant General Counsel and Vice President of Government Affairs. In 1996, he created the Air Carrier Association of America.

David Field US Editor Airline Business

DAVID FIELD has been an aviation reporter since 1982 and is now Americas Editor of AIRLINE BUSINESS, the London-based monthly magazine for executive-level managers that covers airlines worldwide. He is the host of the blog Left Field http://www.flightglobal.com/blogs/left-field  He covers safety, frequent-flyer and consumer issues as well as labour and financial aspects of airlines and airports. He spent nearly two decades at major daily newspapers, including USA TODAY, and earlier was congressional correspondent for Aviation Daily.He is a frequent guest on public radio and television and on other media outlets in the US and the UK.He is a former congressional aide and a former college instructor. He is a graduate of Oxford University in England.

Bob Gallagher COO AIG Travel

Roger Harris Chief Revenue Officer Sun Country Airlines
Roger Harris is Chief Revenue Officer of Sun Country Airlines, a Minneapolis based LCC.  Harris has over a decade of experience at Sun Country Airlines, Northwest Airlines and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines in the U.S., Asian and European airline markets. His experience includes revenue management, route planning, sales, marketing and finance at both small and large carriers.

Kevin Healy VP, Planning AirTran Airways

Kevin Healy joined AirTran Airways in April 1999 as vice president – planning.  Serving as senior vice president – marketing and planning, he oversees the airline’s route strategy, scheduling, pricing, revenue management, marketing, sales and public relations as well as government and community affairs. Healy previously served in management positions with US Airways’ in the pricing, yield management and revenue analysis departments. In 1982, Healy began his airline career at Piedmont Airlines, serving in various customer service positions as well as yield management. In July 2002, Healy was appointed by Governor Jeb Bush to serve on the Florida Commission on Tourism and is a member of the board of directors of Visit Florida. A native of Washington, D.C., Healy attended Spring Hill College in Mobile, Alabama. He currently lives in Winter Park, Fla., with his wife and daughter.

Howard Kass Associate General Counsel US Airways

Howard Kass is a Managing Director and Associate General Counsel for US Airways, Group, Inc. Based in Washington, Mr. Kass is the chief regulatory and international affairs attorney for US Airways. He works closely with business units involving alliances/planning and commercial maters, as well as government affairs. Recent work has involved securing U.S.-China operating rights from DOT, acquisition of London Heathrow slots, congestion management issues, and other regulatory and commercial matters. Mr. Kass joined US Airways in 2003. Prior to US Airways, Mr. Kass helped establish the Transportation Security Administration and became the Director of Regulatory and Economic Policy.   Mr. Kass also has worked for Booz Allen Hamilton and started his career at a Washington law firm representing airline, airports and other transportation industry clients.   Mr. Kass has a JD from Case Western Reserve University, an MBA from Johns Hopkins and a BA from Michigan State University.

Matt Klein Director – Pricing and Distribution Planning AirTran Airways

Matt Klein joined AirTran Airways in September 1999.  Currently serving as Director – Pricing and Distribution Planning, he oversees the airline’s pricing, revenue forecasting, and distribution functions.  Matt started his airline career with US Airways in 1995 and he previously served in management positions with US Airways in tactical pricing and pricing analysis within the revenue management department. Matt earned Travel Agent magazine’s Rising Star award for three years in a row from 2001 through 2003 and he helped lead the airline’s distribution negotiations with the major GDS’, the major online travel agencies, the industry’s metasearch engines, as well as the leading alternate payment methods currently in production on airtran.com. A native of Philadelphia, PA, Matt graduated from the University of Maryland with a degree in finance.  He currently lives in Oviedo, Florida with his wife and two daughters.

Pedro Margozzini SVP, Marketing LAN Airlines

My early education was at The Grange School in Santiago de Chile. I received my degree on Industrial Engineering from the Catholic University in Santiago in 1988. I was general manager for Apple Computer and Computerland in Chile, and 10 years ago I joined LAN. During this time in LAN I have been Tours Vicepresident, Loyalty Vicepresident, Sales Vicepresident, Service Senior Vicepresident and today I am LAN´s Marketing Senior Vicepresident. My area leads four of our strategies: 1) Comunications Strategy, 2) Travel Experience Strategy, 3) Loyalty Strategy and 4) e Business Strategy.

Pete McGlade VP, Schedule Planning Southwest Airlines

- Born August 30, 1953  Newry, County Down,  Ireland    - Grew up in NYC and Yonkers, NY -  Graduated from Purdue University, West Lafayette IN. May 1975 B.S. Management - Worked as a Supervisor in a cheese packaging plant for a year after college 1975-76   - Worked for Northwest Orient Airlines for almost 4 years 1976-1980, as a Ramper, Ticket Agent, Station Service Manager, Reservations Control Analyst and in Baggage Service, Station Staffing - Worked for AirCal  and PSA 1980-1982, as a Manager in Revenue Management and Market Planning - With Southwest Airlines for 24 years 1983 to Present, as Schedule Planner, Director of Schedule Planning, and Vice President Schedule Planning.

Caesar Mercado Director of Consumer Marketing LSG Sky Chefs

Caesar Mercado is Director of Consumer Marketing at LSG Sky Chefs and is responsible for the Buy on Board program in North America. He joined LSG as Global Marketing Director for Buy on Board.  Previously, Mr. Mercado was VP of Sales and Marketing at BEST Institute and VP of Integrated Marketing at Xerox Corporation.  While at Xerox, he was also responsible for the creation and deployment of outsourcing and consulting solutions to a global audience. He has led many US-centric and multinational marketing programs across various industries.  He has taken several consumer brands to a number one status in their categories.  His background also includes Hispanic Marketing. Mr. Mercado holds an MBA degree in Marketing from the University of Southern California and an Engineering degree from the University of California at Los Angeles.  He lives in Dallas with his wife and children.

Kyle Moore VP, Product Marketing Sabre Airline Solutions

Kyle Moore has been with Sabre for over 10 years, with experience across a variety of disciplines.  He currently leads the Product Marketing team responsible for setting Sabre’s product strategy across the air and rail distribution spaces, as well as the Sabre’s Enterprise Data Management strategy.  For airline distribution, this includes identifying where Sabre evolves its core participation, its connectivity tools, its point-of-sale shopping technology, and its inventory solutions.Prior to this, Kyle has also had marketing responsibility for hotel distribution and a large variety of Sabre’s solutions offered to airlines for their internal automation needs, including tools to facilitate crew management and airport staffing, loyalty tools, cabin services, and reservations and point of sale tools.  He also has substantive experience in corporate travel management and online self-management tools, traditional agency shopping and booking behavior.In addition to these roles, Kyle has held positions responsible for the development of Sabre’s corporate strategy, in business development, participating in several of Sabre’s largest partnerships and acquisitions, as well as corporate finance.After finishing his graduate school work, Kyle started his career in finance at American Airlines, where he also focused on finance and risk management.  Kyle has been married to his wife, Nancy, for 11 years and has two children, a son, Alexander who is 5 and a daughter, Sydney, who is 4.

Tim Morgan CEO NewAir and Tours

Tim is Founder & President of Morgan Air LLP, a fixed-base operation of corporate aircraft charter, management of corporate aircraft, leasing flight training and maintenance services in Canada and the US. Morgan Air employs 30 pilots and maintenance engineers. The current fleet is 16 aircraft including four corporate jets. Formerly, as Founder, Director Flight Operations & Executive Vice President of WestJet Airlines, Tim helped grow WestJet from start-up to 52 new Boeing 737NG aircraft servicing North America with scheduled and charter services. At the time of his departure, WestJet employed 550 pilots, 1,200 flight attendants and 300 maintenance engineers. Tim initiated and was the executive responsible for flight operations and operations control. He managed all relationships with Transport Canada and the FAA and all aircraft purchasing contracts. He also oversaw development and implementation of specifications for WestJet aircraft and was responsible for flight crew and maintenance labor relations. Tim is a Graduate of Mount Royal College Aviation Major with Airline Transport Ratings for both Canada and the USA and over 15000 hours flying experience on various aircraft types.

Ken Quinn Partner Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman

Mr. Quinn is co-leader of Pillsbury's Aviation practice and Aviation, Aerospace & Transportation industry. The Chambers USA 2007 Guide again singled out Mr. Quinn for praise and ranked Pillsbury's aviation practice as "National, Tier 1." He represents airlines, aerospace companies, airports, security companies, on-line travel companies, global distribution systems, banks, private equity, hedge funds, and aircraft lenders/lessors in a variety of regulatory, litigation, acquisition, antitrust, enforcement, legislative, product liability, and criminal matters. His recent efforts include serving as lead counsel in the successful battle to gain U.S. DOT certification for Virgin America. He now represents the carrier on multiple matters.  He serves as Special Regulatory Counsel to Frontier Airlines.  He is representing MAXjet Airways in bankruptcy and regulatory matters. He is litigating cases in the Second Circuit, Eleventh Circuit, and Ninth Circuit Courts of Appeals for airport and airline clients. He is a preferred provider of legal services for one of the world's largest leasing companies, represents multiple aircraft and engine manufacturers on certification and enforcement matters, counsels developers in airspace hazard matters, advises private equity funds and many corporations involving the use of corporate aircraft, and represents banks and other lenders in airline, fixed-based operator, aircraft, and maintenance company acquisitions. He has represented multiple clients in criminal investigations and prosecutions after airline crashes. He is involved in several airline bankruptcies and mergers and acquisitions. He serves as the Chief Judge of an AAA/ICDR arbitral panel in an aviation dispute between two airlines.Mr. Quinn serves as the General Counsel and Secretary of the Flight Safety Foundation, which has over 900 members in 142 countries around the world. He has served on FSF's Board of Governors since 2001. He has been Editor-in-Chief of The Air & Space Lawyer of the American Bar Association since 1997. He is a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society, and serves as an officer of the Washington, DC Branch He is on the Editorial Board of The Annals of Air and Space Law of McGill University. He has served on the CCH Aviation Law Advisory Council since 1999. He is a founding Director of the DePaul International Aviation Law Institute. He is the past Chair of the ABA Forum on Air & Space Law, past chair of its annual meeting, and a Member of its Governing Committee since 1994.Mr. Quinn was Chief Counsel of the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration from 1991-93, and served as counselor to the Secretary of Transportation from 1989-91. He was a Senior Advisor to the Office of the President-elect in 1988. He is a member of the ABA Forum on Air & Space Law, ABA Torts Trial and Insurance Practice Section, Aviation and Space Law Committee, and ABA Section of Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice. He has been listed in The International Who's Who of Aviation Lawyers since 2004. He is also listed in Euromoney's Guide to the World's Leading Aviation Lawyers and in Who's Who International Aviation Lawyers. He is a member of the Wings Club, International Aviation Club, Aeroclub, Airports Council International—Legal Committee, National Republican Lawyers Association, British American Business Association, and the Federalist Society.

Bobby Schroeter Sr. Director, Consumer Marketing Spirit Airlines

Marty St George VP, Network Planning JetBlue Airways

Martin St. George joined JetBlue in June, 2006 as Vice President, Planning. Mr. St. George is responsible for the route selection, analysis, fleet-planning and network strategy for JetBlue.Prior to joining JetBlue, Mr. St. George held a number of positions of increasing responsibility for both United and US Airways in marketing, product development and network planning.   He graduated with a degree in civil engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1986.

Rick Zeni VP, Revenue Management JetBlue Airways
Rick Zeni is Vice President – Revenue Management at JetBlue Airways where he is responsible for guiding the airline's revenue management operations, including maintaining JetBlue’s strong brand as a low-fare airline while profitably managing the low-cost airline’s inventory of seats.

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