Several candidates have already expressed interest in becoming the next CEO of Latvia’s national airline, airBaltic, the company’s interim chairman of the board, Andrejs Martinovs, said in an interview with the TV3 program “900 Seconds” on Thursday.
He noted that he has received proposals from multiple potential candidates for the CEO position, marking the beginning of the selection process. The majority of interested parties are high-level professionals from the international aviation industry, although there are also some candidates from Latvia.
Martinovs expressed the view that the selection of airBaltic’s new CEO could either happen relatively quickly or take longer, depending on whether the recruitment process can be fast-tracked or must follow formal regulatory procedures.
He also emphasized that having prior experience in the aviation industry would be an advantage for candidates. “From my own professional experience, I see that people who have significant experience in a specific sector tend to act faster and with higher quality,” Martinovs said.
As reported, airBaltic’s board decided on Monday, April 7, to dismiss CEO Martin Gauss from his position. Currently, board member and Chief Operating Officer Pauls Cālītis is serving as interim CEO.
Gauss later stated that the dismissal came as a surprise to him, although politicians had been calling for his departure for some time.
When asked whether he would have done anything differently, Gauss said, “No, I would have continued to lead the company in the same way, because even today, it is a good company.”
Gauss began his tenure at airBaltic on November 1, 2011.
It has also been reported that at the end of January 2025, an agreement was reached with German airline Lufthansa on a €14 million investment in airBaltic. In return, the Lufthansa Group will receive a convertible share that will give it a 10% stake. Following airBaltic’s potential initial public offering (IPO), the convertible share will be transformed into ordinary shares.
After the IPO, the size of Lufthansa Group’s stake will depend on the IPO market price. The agreement also ensures that the Lufthansa Group will hold no less than 5% of airBaltic’s capital post-IPO.
This deal is still subject to approval by Germany’s Federal Cartel Office (Bundeskartellamt).
Currently, the Latvian state owns 97.97% of airBaltic shares, while the remaining 2.03% is held by financial investor Lars Thuesen’s company, Aircraft Leasing 1. On August 30, 2024, the Latvian government agreed that after airBaltic’s IPO, the state must retain at least 25% plus one share in the company’s capital.
In 2024, airBaltic carried a total of 5.2 million passengers—an increase of 13% compared to the previous year—and operated 47,000 flights, up 7% year-on-year.
For 2024, the airBaltic group reported audited losses of €118.159 million, compared to a profit the year before. However, the group’s revenue increased by 11.9% year-on-year, reaching €747.572 million.