Three candidates now remain in the competition for the position of CEO of Latvia’s national airline airBaltic, Minister of Transport Atis Švinka (P) said in an interview with Latvian Radio.
The second round of the competition, which involved eight applicants, ended on the 21st of July, with four candidates advancing to the next stage. Currently, three candidates remain, including some from abroad.
The minister stated that airBaltic’s Supervisory Board is currently conducting individual interviews, and the name of the potential next CEO can be expected to be announced during September.
As previously reported by LETA, the nominations committee initially evaluated more than 40 applications from almost 30 countries for the airBaltic CEO position, before shortlisting eight candidates for the second round.
The job advertisement for the CEO position, announced on the 30th of April 2025, did not specify the salary, though the Supervisory Board has previously said that remuneration will be negotiated individually with the chosen candidate.
In 2024, the airline’s former CEO Martin Gauss earned 838,568 euros.
Until the competition concludes, the airline continues to be led by its current acting CEO and Chief Operations Officer, Pauls Cālītis.
On the 7th of April this year, the airBaltic Supervisory Board decided to dismiss Martin Gauss from his role as Chairman of the Management Board and CEO, a position he had held since the 1st of November 2011.
In 2024, the airBaltic Group posted audited losses of 118.159 million euros, compared to a profit the previous year. However, turnover increased by 11.9% year-on-year to 747.572 million euros.
At present, the Latvian state owns 97.97% of airBaltic shares, while 2.03% are held by the financial investor Aircraft Leasing 1, owned by Danish businessman Lars Thuesen. On the 30th of June this year, Germany’s Federal Cartel Office approved Lufthansa’s acquisition of a 10% stake in airBaltic.
Following the company’s planned Initial Public Offering (IPO), Lufthansa Group’s shareholding will be determined by the potential IPO market price. The deal also stipulates that Lufthansa Group will own no less than 5% of airBaltic’s capital after the IPO.
Furthermore, on the 30th of August 2024, the Latvian government agreed that the state must retain at least 25% plus one share of the company’s capital after airBaltic’s IPO.
Read also: The battle for “airBaltic” leadership continues – new CEO to receive lower salary than Gauss