Regional and City Airports has appointed Steve Lilley to the newly created role of Commercial Director.
Regional and City Airports (RCA) operates regional airports in the UK including Bournemouth Airport, Exeter Airport and Norwich Airport.
Lilley has over 25 years of experience in the aviation industry, with a strong background in network planning, airline relations, commercial strategy, and aviation development. With an MSc in Air Transport from Cranfield University, his career includes roles with former British Airways’ low cost airline Go, easyJet and Flybe.
Since joining RCA in 2014 as aviation development director, Lilley has played a key role in driving passenger growth at Bournemouth, Exeter, and Norwich Airports, securing key airline partnerships and expanding the route network.
Recent highlights include attracting Jet2 to Bournemouth with 16 new routes launching this season; KLM to Exeter with the start of a new daily service to Amsterdam last month, and bringing Ryanair to Norwich Airport for the first time last year.
In his new role, Steve will join the Executive Team and take on responsibility for all commercial activity across RCA’s airports, including aviation development, car parking, terminal concessions, other non-aeronautical income streams, and marketing.
Andrew Bell, CEO of RCA said, “Steve’s deep industry knowledge and commercial expertise have been instrumental in RCA’s success. His appointment as Commercial Director is a natural next step, and I have no doubt he will continue to drive growth and innovation across our airports as we look forward to a busy summer ahead.”
RCA is investing £60 million (US$80 million) in infrastructure expansion at Bournemouth Airport. Exeter Airport and Norwich Airport are expanding with more routes being served.
In addition to owning and operating Bournemouth, Exeter and Norwich Airports, RCA holds a management contract for Solent Airport and owns XLR Executive Jet Centres at Birmingham, Bournemouth, Exeter, and Liverpool. It recently announced a strategic partnership between XLR and Saxon Air at Norwich Airport to enhance corporate aviation services.
RCA is part of Rigby Group, a wholly-owned UK family business with a consolidated turnover of £3.7 billion and 9,000 employees.
