International Airlines Group (IAG) has announced a change in leadership at Iberia, with Fernando Candela replacing Javier Sánchez Prieto as president and CEO starting in July. Candela will lead Iberia until the end of the year, culminating his long professional career within the Iberia Group.
The company highlighted that Candela’s arrival in July will provide continuity and stability as it pursues its ambitious development plans, leading a solid team of professionals in executing Iberia’s Next Chapter transformation plans, aimed at making Iberia an airline focused on its customers and employees.
Together with the Iberia team, Candela will implement a clearly defined strategy for each of the company’s business segments following the pandemic. The airline plans to consolidate its position as a leader in the Madrid hub, which will be further supported by Air Europa’s operation.
Additionally, he will seek to maintain Iberia Handling’s leadership in Spain and develop the Maintenance unit as a reference center in southern Europe.
Fernando Candela has an extensive background within the Iberia Group. He has been CEO of LEVEL since 2019 and Director of Transformation at IAG since 2020. Previously, he served as CEO of Iberia Express for six years and as Director of Planning and Management Control at Air Nostrum, among other roles.
With nearly 30 years of experience in the aviation sector, Candela holds an industrial engineering degree from the Polytechnic University of Valencia and has completed various executive training programs at institutions such as MIT, IE Business School, and IESE Business School. He has also worked for companies like Uralita and Andersen Consulting.
Regarding his new position, Candela said: «There are many and significant challenges ahead, and I am convinced that, thanks to the professionalism demonstrated daily by the Iberia team, we will continue with the growth and relentless improvement of the company in each and every one of its businesses.»
Among his first challenges will be addressing Iberia’s debt repayment and continuing negotiations to complete IAG’s acquisition of Air Europa, a process in which Candela has been involved under the leadership of Luis Gallego.
Luis Gallego, CEO of IAG, praised Candela’s appointment, stating: «Fernando Candela is an extraordinary professional and has been a key player in IAG and the Iberia Group. His extensive experience in aviation and transformation will bring great value to the company. His solid background makes him the best person to lead Iberia in the coming months.»
Javier Sánchez Prieto will undertake new professional projects outside the aviation industry. During his 12 years in the Group, he has led Iberia and Vueling and was also part of the founding management team of Iberia Express.
«It has been an honor for me to lead Iberia these years. I am very proud to have been part of the team that continued the transformation of Iberia, making it one of the best companies in the world.», concluded Sánchez Prieto.
Iberia has managed to recover its pre-pandemic position in financial, demand, operations, and customer service aspects, as well as in its Handling and Maintenance businesses.
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