Menzies Aviation issued two press releases this week. The first announced the creation of a new role – that of Chief Safety & Training Officer, to which it has appointed Yogesh Parekh. Yogesh’s career with Menzies began in precisely this field back in 1990 and since then, he has held numerous positions in operations, safety, audit and risk. In 2020, he became SVP Group Risk, moving to SVP Risk & GSE MEAA in 2024. From 01DEC25, he will take up his new position as Chief Safety & Training Officer – a role that has been created to demonstrate and ensure the company’s global safety culture, built on a fully trained and resilient workforce. Yogesh is based in Dubai, and will continue to develop risk management tools and policies to maintain professional quality levels across Menzies’ global network.
Philipp Joeinig, Group CEO, Menzies Aviation, said: “Safety is our number one priority and having highly experienced safety leaders across our business is critical. The creation of the Chief Safety & Training Officer role reflects our commitment to continually raising the bar and we are pleased to see Yogesh stepping into this position. Yogesh has been a trusted safety leader within our organization for many years and is highly regarded within the industry. His expertise will enhance our global safety and training culture as we continue to grow our company.”
In other news, Menzies Aviation revealed that it is another step closer to net-zero 2045, in London Heathrow and London Gatwick, since it has increased the use of Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO) as opposed to diesel fuel at these airports. “At Heathrow, around 60% of Menzies’ GSE fleet now runs on HVO and more than 50% at Gatwick, with the remainder of all GSE equipment electric,” the release states, speaking of an annual usage of 65,000 liters of fuel and saving of up to 165 tons of CO2e through the transition to HVO: “the equivalent of removing more than 35 passenger cars from the road”. Similar transitions have taken place at Gothenburg (GOT), Stockholm Arlanda (ARN), and Amsterdam (AMS), San Diego International Airport (SAN) and San Francisco International Airport (SFO). John Geddes, Chief Governance & Sustainability Officer & Company Secretary, explained: “Advancing the use of HVO at two of our largest UK ground handling operations represents another important milestone in our journey to decarbonize and achieve net-zero by 2045. HVO provides an immediate reduction in emissions while we continue to invest in electric ground support equipment as part of our Electric First initiative. By combining renewable fuel alternatives with our long-term electrification strategy, we’re taking tangible action to support our customers’ sustainability goals and the wider industry’s net zero ambitions.”
