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In an effort to provide you with the most information about the Greater Miami Aviation Association and its members, we have begun a monthly profile on our board of directors.
Each month we will feature one of the GMAA directors so that you may be better informed about who is serving you. There also is a plan to feature general members as well.
The first Board of Directors profile is on Mansour Rasnavad, president and CEO of Florida West Airlines, an all-cargo carrier based in Miami.
Marc T. Henderson
President
Greater Miami Aviation Association
President/CEO
Florida West International Airways
Mansour Rasnavad has been in the aviation industry for over thirty years. Since 1996, Mr. Rasnavad has been the principle shareholder of Florida West International Airlines. He also has been President and Chief Executive Officer since 2002.
He began his aviation career in 1978 as the Executive Vice President and later Chairman of Global International Airways, a world-wide passenger and cargo charter carrier. From 1986 through 2000, Mr. Rasnavad was the President and Co-Founder of Aviation Leasing Group, a global company specializing in leasing, purchasing and selling commercial aircraft. In May of 2003, he formed the MIA Airline Cargo Consortium (MACC), a non-profit organization dedicated to solving security and cargo issues faced by airlines at Miami International Airport.
Prior to entering aviation, he completed intense executive training with the Citibank group in Greece. Mr. Rasnavad became an international executive officer for Citibank heading the credit division for private, corporate, project and asset based financing. He received his BS degree in Business Administration and Economics from George Mason University, Washington DC, in 1975. He is married and has three children. He was the recipient of the Wright Brothers Award for year 2007.
What is the most pressing challenge facing the aviation industry today
Structuring an airline to remain profitable in the current environment is the greatest challenge facing the aviation industry today. During the past two years the airline industry has experienced significant losses due to the economic downturn. To survive, the airlines of the world have had to adapt and became more cost effective, cut capacity, reduce employees, retire older equipments and reduce fuel consumption. The airlines are meeting this challenge in regard to the cost factors that they can control. However, oil prices are steadily increasing and will continue to trend upward. The aviation industry will need an orchestrated commitment from government to step in and develop sustainable energy resources to keep the oil prices affordable for years to come.
How has FWIA has fared in the economic downturn over the past two years?
We were not immune from the past two years of the economic downturn. Just like other airlines we had to make hard and effective decisions to continue our operation. We changed our business model from a scheduled freight carrier to an airline service provider offering ACMI to other airlines’ customers. Of course, with this business model change we were forced to make painful cuts resulting in the elimination of our commercial sales and marketing department, along with reductions in our accounting and operations departments. The change of business model was drastic, but has been an effective measure to keep our company profitable.
How bright or bleak is the future for the cargo side of the industry?
I am cautiously optimistic for a much better future for the cargo side of the aviation industry. Over the past two years the market has gone from a dramatic slowdown in volume and a collapse in airfreight rates to a surge in demand during the past seven to eight months and a steady increase in rates. Demand for lift has increased throughout the world as the US and other countries in South and Central America start to rebuild inventories. There are also many reports that carriers in Asia, the US and the Middle East are looking to increase their capacity on key routes. I am hopeful that this trend will continue for years to come.
What is the greatest challenge GMAA faces today and in the future?
GMAA's greatest challenge today is the same as it has been in the past; we need to increase our membership in order to become a more effective organization. The GMAA needs to expand its membership not only in numbers but also in the types of organizations that become members. By adding businesses that represent all areas of the aviation industry, governmental agencies, legislators, financial institutions, educational institutions, MRO's, parts and engine suppliers and other aviation related business, the internal resources and knowledge available to the GMAA will result in an organization that is better suited to provide services and solutions to its members.
If you did not own an airline, what would you be doing?
Aviation has been my lifelong passion and I truly enjoy every aspect of airline ownership. If I did not own an airline, my second choice would have been to become a banker, but I suspect that even as a banker, I would somehow have been involved in aviation. |
