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Tom Horton: The Governing Board of oneworld elected American Airlines Chairman, President and Chief Executive Tom Horton as its Chairman. He takes on the role from Gerard Arpey, whom he succeeded at American Airlines following Mr Arpey's decision to retire from the carrier. Tom Horton's nomination was made at the oneworld Governing Board's final meeting of the year, held in New York, where the alliance's headquarters has been based since June. Mr. Arpey’s retirement as chairman and chief executive officer of American Airlines was announced on 29th November the same day as American filed voluntary petitions for Chapter 11 reorganisation in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.

Pádraig Ó Ríordáin: On 21st December, the Dublin Airport Authority (DAA) confirmed that the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Dr Leo Varadkar, had appointed Mr Pádraig Ó Ríordáin as chairman designate of the Dublin Airport Authority plc. Mr Ó Ríordáin is a partner in Arthur Cox, the Irish law firm, and was formerly Managing Partner of the firm. He is also a non-executive director of Paddy Power plc and TVC Holdings plc. He is a member of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, the American Bar Association, the International Bar Association and the Harvard Law School Association. Mr Ó Ríordáin is also a member of the European Commission's Insolvency Law Expert Group (ILEG), the advisory body to the European Commission on the development of an EU cross-border crisis management regime and resolution for the banking sector. He was responsible for legally implementing the €5 billion burden-sharing with subordinated debt holders through liability management exercises and application for a subordinated liability order. He has also worked with the new Government on the recapitalisation of the banks during 2011. He was also a key adviser to the previous Fianna Fail-led government during the financial crisis, in particular during discussions on our bailout with the EU/ECB/IMF troika and on the establishment of the National Asset Management Agency. Aside from taking responsibility for corporate governance at the DAA, Mr O Riordain will also play a significant role in providing advice and input on a number of key issues facing the authority when he takes up his post in the new year. He will also need to find a new chief executive to replace Declan Collier.

Mark Schwab: The Chief Executive Board of Star Alliance has appointed Mark Schwab to head the Star Alliance central organisation, based in Frankfurt, Germany as its new Chief Executive. Schwab comes from Star Alliance member United where he was responsible for the company’s alliances as Senior Vice President Alliances. In this capacity he also served as a member of Star Alliance’s Management Board. He succeeds Jaan Albrecht, who was appointed as CEO of Austrian Airlines on 1st November 2011. Mr. Schwab has held numerous executive positions in the airline industry at United Airlines, US Airways and American Airlines. He began his aviation career in 1975 with Pan American World Airways in Rio de Janeiro. He has headed organisations in Latin America, Europe and Asia. Being fluent in Portuguese and in Spanish language he holds a bachelor’s degree in Latin American affairs from the University of Virginia, Charlottesville. Mark Schwab is married and has two daughters.