Highlands and Islands Airports Ltd (Hial) announces appointment of three new directors
A trio of new directors have been appointed at Highlands and Islands Airports (Hial).
The appointments fill the previously vacant roles of the directors for airport operations, operational support, and safety & compliance.
Andrew Farquhar, who has been with Hial since 2008 having initially joined as an airport firefighter, is the new Director of Airport Operations.
His career with Hial began with his firefighter role at Sumburgh Airport, before progressing through the ranks to become Watch Manager in the Airport Fire Service.
In 2016, he became Assistant Airport Services Manager, and later Airport Operations Manager before holding the role of Airport Manager. In 2019 he became General Manager at Sumburgh Airport, responsible for overall operational management including safety, compliance and finance, successfully delivering a number of key projects.
He takes over the vacant director post from George Farquhar who retired as Director of Operations earlier in June. George was Chief Fire Officer for Hial before moving to the role of Director of Operations in 2019.
Elsewhere, Karen Fraser will take up post as the Director of Operational Support on an interim basis.
She has more than 30 years of experience with Hial and has held several key roles during her time with the organisation. Karen has been responsible for supporting Air Traffic Services, Fire and Aviation Security compliance for the past six years. She also has a “comprehensive understanding of the organisation's entire value chain, from front-line processes to strategic objectives to this new role” and will have a strong focus on streamlining workflows and implementing Hial’s objectives to introduce revised operating models.
And Gary Cooper will join Hial as Director of Safety and Compliance. He has more than 25 years of experience in safety, environment, assurance, risk, and compliance.
His most recent position was Director of Safety, Health, Environment, Quality and Security for Babcock International based at HM Naval Base Clyde where he directed safety, health, and environmental initiatives. Hial added that he also “implemented effective improvement strategies, all of which were underpinned by human factors hazard mitigation and risk management”.
Gary has previously worked in the aviation and offshore energy sectors. He has a Master’s Diploma in Safety Management and is a Member of the International Institute of Risk and Safety Management.
All three directors are key appointments to support Darren MacLeod, Hial’s Chief Operating Officer to “continue to deliver a safe and regulatory compliant regional airport group”.
