Benjamin Smith to receive APEX CEO Lifetime Achievement Award
Benjamin Smith to receive CEO Lifetime Achievement Award from APEX/IFSA
APEX (Airline Passenger Experience Association) has announced that Air France and KLM Group Chief Executive Officer Benjamin Smith will receive the CEO Lifetime Achievement Award on Wednesday, October 30 at the APEX/IFSA Awards Ceremony at APEX/IFSA Global EXPO. This award honours industry leaders who have dedicated their lives to the enhancement of the passenger experience and advancing the industry. This award is reserved only for individuals that drive transformative change for the industry.
In APEX’s five-decade history, only a half-dozen global aviation leaders have received the APEX CEO Lifetime Achievement Award. This year, the honour is bestowed upon Benjamin Smith, Chief Executive Officer of Air France-KLM as the 7th leader to receive the APEX CEO Lifetime Achievement Award.
Smith is a senior airline industry veteran, having spent twenty years at Air Canada before joining Air France and KLM as Chief Executive Officer. In 1990, while at university, he started part time as a Customer Service Agent at Air Ontario. In 1992 he followed an entrepreneurial path and established his own retail corporate travel agency, successfully running this business for eight years. In 2002 he joined Air Canada, envisioning and subsequently leading its Tango subsidiary.
Smith later became Vice President, Network Planning, followed by Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer in 2007, and subsequently President, Airlines (Air Canada, Rouge, Express, Cargo) and Chief Operating Officer in 2014. He assumed overall responsibility for commercial, operations, and customer service functions, and spearheaded their commercial growth strategy, resulting in impressive financial performance. In August 2018, Smith was appointed CEO of Air France-KLM, and in December, a member of the Air France-KLM Board of Directors.
“APEX/IFSA Awards proudly honours the most innovative approaches to business in passenger experience from our member airlines and vendors,” APEX said. “The Awards recognize a variety of elements of the passenger experience including entertainment, food and beverage, service, and connectivity. Come find out who will take home the 2024 APEX/IFSA Awards, Four and Five Star Awards and more.”
