MEMPHIS, Sept. 28, 2017 — Southern Airways has promoted longtime airline industry executive Mark Cestari to Chief Commercial Officer, bolstering its C-Suite and positioning the airline for future growth. The announcement was made by Chairman and CEO Stan Little at the 37th Annual Pennsylvania Aviation Conference in Latrobe, Penn.
Cestari, who has more than 25 years of airline industry experience, previously served as Executive Vice President for Business Development at Southern. In his new role, he will be responsible for strategic planning, community and government relations, revenue growth, and route development.
“For many years, Mark has been our ‘boots on the ground’ in all of our destination cities. He's researched more routes, pioneered more unique marketing concepts, and spoken to more hometown civic groups and organizations than anyone I've ever met,” said Little. “The revenue and enplanement growth that we've seen over the past two years has been due in large part to his management, and I'm pleased to name him to our core leadership team as Southern's new Chief Commercial Officer."
Cestari has vast expertise in many facets of the airline industry, including regional airline marketing, destination marketing, and travel agency cooperation. He began his career on Madison Avenue working with the iconic Eastern Airlines brand. Cestari was also a vice president for US Airways Express carrier Shuttle America.
He holds a bachelor’s degree from Boston College, is a private pilot, and devotedly follows the New England Patriots.
