Pinnacle Airlines Corp. COO John Spanjers to Succeed Sean Menke as CEO Effective June 1
19-Apr-2012 Pinnacle Airlines Corp. (OTCMarkets.com: PNCLQ) today announced a leadership transition under which John Spanjers, currently chief operating officer of the company, will succeed Sean Menke as chief executive officer, effective June 1, 2012. Spanjers has been COO at Pinnacle since September 2011, and was president of Mesaba Aviation prior to joining Pinnacle.
Menke has chosen to resign from the company on June 1 and will work closely with Spanjers and the other members of Pinnacle's leadership team to support a seamless transition over the next five weeks. Pinnacle does not anticipate this transition will impact the timeline of the company's Chapter 11 proceedings or Pinnacle's ability to successfully restructure and emerge from Chapter 11.
"John brings a strong and proven track record of airline leadership," said Donald J. Breeding, Chairman of the Board of Pinnacle Airlines Corp. "Given his prior Chapter 11 experience, John is particularly well-suited to lead Pinnacle's ongoing turnaround efforts and has been actively involved in many of the key initiatives and negotiations during our restructuring process."
"Pinnacle has very talented employees and a strong leadership team, and we remain focused on successfully emerging from Chapter 11," said Spanjers. "Our operating performance has remained strong since filing for Chapter 11 protection, and we expect that our operations, supported by a deep bench of talent and committed employees, will continue moving forward."
As of Menke's departure on June 1, Pinnacle expects to have achieved a number of important restructuring objectives during the initial 60 days of its Chapter 11 proceedings, including having:
- Renegotiated key business agreements with Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and EDC;
- Obtained final approval of its debtor-in-possession (DIP) financing;
- Completed the Section 1110 aircraft process;
- Received final court approval of its "First Day motions" to help the company continue to operate in the ordinary course; and,
- Initiated a collegial and collaborative relationship with the Unsecured Creditors Committee and its advisors.
Additionally, the previously-announced search for a new Chief Financial Officer is progressing.