Air Niugini and Kumul Telikom get new bosses

By PETER ESILA
THE Government has announced the appointments of Alan Milne as Air Niugini Limited’s managing director and Paul Hyde as the managing director of Kumul Telikom Holdings Limited.
Minister for Public Enterprise and State Investment William Duma, pictured, said under the Kumul Consolidated Holdings Act, “there is a process we follow when we announce the chief executive officers of our State-owned enterprises”.
“In the case of Air Niugini and Kumul Telikom Holdings Limited, we had to follow that process,” Duma said.
“KCH as a shareholder of Air Niugini and Kumul Telikom Holdings Limited engaged recruitment consultants who placed advertisements in the papers asking for expressions from potential candidates.”
He said Milne had a “wealth of experience in the aviation industry and is a 36-year veteran of Qantas Airways Limited”.
“He was the Head of Operations Performance. He has very impeccable credentials,” he said.
Australian Milne holds a Masters in Business and Technology, a Bachelor in Technology degree and is a qualified aircraft maintenance engineer.
“Air Nuigini has had its share of problems but we still see great potential,” Duma said.
Duma said Hyde had worked in a number telecommunications companies around the world, including in the Caribbean, Russia, West Africa and the Middle East.
“He has got a proven track record of turning around struggling tele-communication companies in developing countries,” Duma said.
“We felt he could help us turn around our struggling telecommunications companies (as) he is someone who has worked in countries similar to ours.”
The three State-owned telecommunications companies which have been merged are bmobile, Telikom and DataCo
Englishman Hyde holds a Masters in Business Administration (marketing and finance) degree, a Bachelor of Arts degree (business studies) and a Diploma in Radio Engineering.