South African Airways has appointed Vuyani Jarana as its first permanent CEO since 2015.
Vuyani Jarana is currently chief officer for Vodacom Business at Vodacom Group, a telecommunications company. During his tenure, he transformed Stortech, a 51% subsidiary of Vodacom, from being a declining business to a growing company, changing its shareholding structure and developing a new strategy.
The financially troubled airline has received multiple government bailouts in recent years. It recorded an almost $106 million loss in the first quarter, far exceeding the budgeted loss of $61 million, and faces the prospect of over $455m in loans maturing at the end of September.
South Africa finance minister Malusi Gigaba congratulated Jarana and said: "Given that Mr. Jarana has turned around a loss-making subsidiary of the Vodacom Group, Vodacom Business Africa, into profitable and growth business, we believe he will be key in turning around SAA."