Skills Needed To Salvage Struggling go! Operation

Mesa Air Group, Inc. has appointed Paul Foley as its new Chief Operating Officer. In its announcement, the company stressed that Michael Lotz will remain President and Chief Financial Officer, with a focus on restructuring the company's business.

Jonathan Ornstein, Chairman and CEO of Mesa Air Group, praised Foley's experience as CEO of Mesaba Holdings, the parent company of Mesaba Airlines. "I have known Paul for many years and am confident he is the ideal person to bring the needed skills, leadership and oversight to our operations at a time when Mike Lotz must remain focused on the restructuring of our business."

Foley is also a previous Vice President Operations at Atlas Air, a global cargo operator. Earlier, he was Senior Vice President Operations at LSG/Sky Chefs, and has also served as President of Continental Airlines' Chelsea Catering Corporation.

Foley holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Cornell University and an MBA from the Edwin L. Cox Graduate School of Business at Southern Methodist University, Dallas.

Mesa operates 159 aircraft with over 800 daily system departures to 126 cities, 38 states, the District of Columbia, Canada, the Bahamas and Mexico. Mesa operates as Delta Connection, US Airways Express and United Express, and independently as Mesa Airlines. In June, 2006 Mesa launched inter-island Hawaiian service as go!

The company has seen its fortunes rise and fall with economic trends, and what some would term overzealous expansion. In the second quarter of 2008, the company managed a small operating profit overall, though go! lost $8.3 million... bringing total losses since its June 2006 launch to $34.7 million.

FMI: www.mesa-air.com