Business Leadership Team
Meet Our Executive Leadership Team
Discover the expertise driving our vision.
Explore our leaders' professional backgrounds, academic credentials, and extended contributions.
Habil A. Waswani serves as the Acting Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Kenya Airways Plc. He joined the airline in March 2021 and brings over 19 years of experience in corporate and commercial law, governance and executive leadership.
Prior to joining Kenya Airways, Habil held senior legal and corporate governance positions at several publicly listed institutions, including National Bank of Kenya Limited, Kenya Reinsurance Corporation Limited and Diamond Trust Bank Kenya Limited (DTB).
He holds a Bachelor of Laws (LL. B) degree from the University of Nairobi and a Diploma in Law from the Kenya School of Law. He is also a graduate of the Global Executive Master of Business Administration (GEMBA) programme offered by the United States International University in collaboration with Columbia Business School, Columbia University, New York.
Habil is an Advocate of the High Court of Kenya and a Certified Public Secretary. He is a member in good standing of the Law Society of Kenya (LSK), the Institute of Certified Secretaries of Kenya (ICSK) and the Institute of Directors (IOD). He has also completed various executive leadership, management and corporate governance programmes.
Hellen Mathuka serves as Chief Strategy & Innovation Officer and is responsible for driving the airline's strategic transformation, innovation agenda and long-term growth initiatives.
She has extensive experience in finance, audit and business strategy. Since joining Kenya Airways, she has held several senior leadership positions, including Head of Corporate Finance and Head of Internal Audit. As part of the airline's succession planning programme, she also led the Pricing and Revenue Management function for two years, broadening her commercial and operational expertise.
Before joining Kenya Airways, Hellen worked with East African Breweries Limited, Ernst & Young and Family Bank.
She holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Kenyatta University and a Master of Business Administration (Strategic Management) from the United States International University (USIU).
Hellen is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA-K), Certified Internal Auditor (CIA) and Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA). She also holds certification in Control Self-Assessment, a Diploma in Airline Management from IATA, a Certificate in Executive Business Development from the Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS) and is a certified coach and mentor.
Julius Thairu serves as Chief Commercial & Customer Officer and is responsible for the development and execution of commercial strategy, revenue growth and customer experience initiatives across the Kenya Airways network.
Since joining Kenya Airways in 2001, he has held several senior leadership positions across the commercial function. Prior to his current role, he served as Director, Sales, where he was responsible for developing and implementing the airline's global sales strategy. He previously led the Pricing, Revenue Management and Distribution function from 2009 to 2014.
Julius brings extensive international aviation experience, having worked across three continents and successfully delivered growth and performance improvement initiatives throughout his career.
He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Building Economics from the University of Nairobi and has completed various executive management and leadership programmes, including the Executive Development Programme at the Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS), South Africa.
Fredrick Kitunga serves as Chief Information & Data Officer and leads the airline's digital transformation, information technology and data strategy agenda.
He brings more than 21 years of experience in managing enterprise ICT environments, including hardware infrastructure, data centre operations, network and communication systems, database management and digital payment platforms.
Prior to joining Kenya Airways, Fredrick held senior leadership positions at KCB Bank Group and Equity Bank Group, where he played a key role in leveraging technology to drive business performance and operational efficiency. He has a proven track record of aligning technology strategy with corporate objectives and maximizing the value of technology investments.
Fredrick holds qualifications in Electrical Engineering and is certified in Risk and Information Systems Control (CRISC), Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA) and Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL).
Mary Mwenga serves as Acting Chief Financial Officer, bringing over 20 years of finance experience, including more than 15 years in the aviation industry. Her expertise spans financial management, business performance, audit, and supply chain leadership, providing her with a broad perspective on driving sustainable business growth and operational excellence.
Prior to her appointment as Acting Chief Financial Officer, Mary served as Head of Business Performance & Reporting, where she played a key role in financial planning, performance management, and strategic decision-making. She has also held senior leadership roles across the Supply Chain and Finance functions at Kenya Airways. Before joining the airline, she worked with Ernst & Young and later served as Chief Accountant at Flamingo Airlines Limited, now Jambojet.
Her extensive experience across finance and operations positions her well to support Kenya Airways' strategic objectives and continued transformation journey.
Captain Paul Njoroge serves as Acting Chief Operations Officer, bringing more than two decades of aviation experience and operational leadership.
Since joining Kenya Airways in 2003, he has held several progressive leadership positions within the Flight Operations function, most recently serving as Director, Flight Operations. In this role, he played a key role in driving operational excellence, strengthening safety performance and advancing crew development initiatives.
An accomplished commercial pilot, Captain Njoroge has extensive flying experience across multiple aircraft types, including the Boeing 737, Boeing 777 and Embraer fleets.
He holds executive education qualifications from the Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS), complementing his aviation expertise with strong business and leadership capabilities.
Gilbert Bett serves as Director, Technical and leads Kenya Airways' Technical Division, overseeing aircraft maintenance, engineering, technical operations and the airline's Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) business.
Since joining Kenya Airways in 2006, he has held a number of progressive technical leadership roles, including Production Engineer, Manager Maintenance Control Centre, Head of MRO Operations, Acting Head of Base Maintenance and Acting Technical Director. Through these roles, he has contributed significantly to strengthening the airline's maintenance capabilities and growing Kenya Airways' position as a leading regional MRO provider.
An engineer by training, Gilbert has built his career around operational reliability, aviation safety and technical innovation.
He holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Strategic Management from Kenyatta University, combining technical expertise with a strong strategic and commercial perspective.
Captain Haig Anyonyi serves as Director, Corporate Quality, Safety & Environment and is responsible for overseeing safety governance, quality assurance and environmental management across Kenya Airways.
He brings extensive experience in flight operations, aviation training and regulatory compliance. Prior to his current role, he served in several operational leadership positions, including Training Captain and Flight Simulation Training Device (FSTD) Compliance Manager, where he played a key role in strengthening pilot training standards and operational governance.
Since assuming leadership of the Corporate Quality, Safety & Environment function in 2021, Captain Anyonyi has led initiatives aimed at enhancing safety performance, reinforcing regulatory compliance and embedding industry best practices across the airline.
He continues to champion operational excellence and support Kenya Airways' commitment to maintaining the highest international safety and quality standards.
Fitsum Abadi Gebrehawaria serves as Director, Cargo, leading Kenya Airways' cargo business and freight operations strategy across the airline's network. He is responsible for driving cargo revenue growth, strengthening commercial partnerships, expanding market opportunities and advancing the airline's position as a leading air cargo provider in Africa.
He brings over 25 years of leadership experience across the aviation, air cargo, logistics and freight sectors. Prior to joining Kenya Airways, Fitsum held several senior executive roles, including Managing Director of Ethiopian Cargo & Logistics Services, where he led the expansion of the business' global network and service portfolio, strengthening its position as one of Africa's leading aviation logistics providers. He has also served as Head of Cargo Commercial at Salam Air and held leadership positions across aviation and logistics organizations.
Throughout his career, Fitsum has built extensive expertise in cargo strategy, business development, market expansion, freight forwarding, chartering and leasing, pricing, and operational transformation. He has worked with organizations including Ethiopian Airlines, DHL Global Forwarding and Mobility Advisory Services, supporting business growth, operational optimisation and strategic execution. He has also served on various boards, providing oversight on strategy, performance, and organisational development.
Fitsum holds an Executive 3-Dimensional MBA from the Open University (UK), an MBA from ITM/Southern New Hampshire University, and a Bachelor of Science degree from Addis Ababa University. He has also completed numerous professional certifications and executive leadership programmes in air freight, logistics, cargo handling and organizational leadership, including training through the GE Crotonville Fellows Program (USA) and Galilee College, Israel.
