Central Mountain Air Ltd. on February 3 named Bob Cummings as its chief executive officer and also announced Binder Capital Group has invested significant resources into the regional airline based in Smithers, British Columbia.
Established in 1987, Central Mountain Air (CMA) is a privately owned and operated company, providing scheduled flights and cargo services to 16 communities and charter flights throughout British Columbia, Alberta, and western Canada.
Cummings previously served as executive VP with WestJet Airlines from 2006 until October 2018, helping to lead WestJet’s revenue grew from just over one billion to more than $4.5 billion. Cummings also helped to led the growth of WestJet Vacations, WestJet Rewards, the launch of WestJet Encore, Swoop and the airline’s expansion into operating wide-body aircraft.
“CMA has a proud history of scheduled service and has built a substantive charter business,” said Cummings. “I am excited by the potential of CMA to further connect Canadian communities to the world, whether through scheduled service, charters, and/or provisioning cargo. With a fragmented under 50-seat Canadian regional airline market, there are many opportunities before us. My first-priority will be to meet all the CMA employees to listen and talk about our exciting future.”
Douglas McCrea has been president of Central Mountain Air for more than 18 years and will continue in that role. “Our Team at Central Mountain has worked hard to build an exemplary scheduled network and charter service,” said McCrea. “We strive to provide the best service to our communities we serve and fulfil the expectations of all our stakeholders.”
Established in 1976 by John Binder, through the amalgamation of three small avionics repair shops, Binder Capital Group states its new interest in CMA is highly synergistic with its core investments. This includes, but is not limited to, Avmax Group Inc., a global aviation company focused on regional aircraft leases, spare parts and Maintenance Repair Organizations in Africa, Canada, and the U.S.; Alberta-based Airdrie Airpark Ltd.; regional airline carriers in Canada and the U.S.; and private airline charter companies in Canada, Europe, and the US.
“Bob’s depth of commercial experience and broad skill set will accelerate our growth mandate and execution of our overall strategy,” said Binder. “Bob’s accomplishments at WestJet occurred with a strong employee and customer-centric orientation and this approach will provide benefits for the communities we serve and our employees alike.”
