AirAsia’s Tony Fernandes: ‘Too Many Leaders Stay Too Long’

The public nature of aviation means it tends to attract large-scale palace intrigue about executive leadership changes from employees, customers and other stakeholders and observers. With the industry typically having small margins and many uncontrollable events, it is easy to hope the executive change will improve the experience, hence calls for Bob Crandall to return to American Airlines.

Change can be a sensitive topic, but not to AirAsia co-founder Tony Fernandes. “Retirement is important,” he said at the Rise technology conference in Hong Kong this month. “Too many leaders stay too long. I think leadership needs to be refreshed.”

His comments were not directed at anyone or prompted by any events, but leadership change discussion can come up often for executives.

Emirates President Sir Tim Clark has spent most of his professional life at the Dubai giant, including almost 17 years as president. He is routinely asked of his future plans, not only because of his long tenure as president but also because that at 69 years old, he is above the government’s retirement limit of 65. The official retirement age is 60 for non-Emiratis but this can be extended up to 65, the government says.

Clark is asked so often about retirement that he has talking points with the eloquence he is known for. “Time will knock on the door and this is a younger man’s business,” he said in 2018. That is similar to his 2015 comment that “It’s a younger man’s game.”

He deflects to the owner – the Dubai government – and told Airline Ratings: “My succession will be determined by the shareholder.” He said, “I believe that the owner will have plenty of scope there.”