Air France-KLM Board Nominates Marjan Rintel for Second Four-Year Term as KLM’s President & CEO
- Joe Breitfeller
- 2 days ago
- 2 min read
KLM has announced that the Air France-KLM Board has nominated Marjan Rintel for a second four-year term as KLM Royal Dutch Airlines’ President and CEO.
On Monday (February 2, 2026), KLM announced that Air France-KLM Group's Board of Directors approved the nomination of Marjan Rintel as President & CEO of KLM Royal Dutch Airlines for a second four-year term. This renewal was proposed by KLM’s Supervisory Board and Group CEO Benjamin Smith. The Supervisory Board of KLM has informed the Works Council of the intended reappointment and will submit a request for advice. Formal confirmation of this decision will follow in the KLM shareholders’ meeting.
In Monday’s announcement, Air France-KLM Group’s CEO, Benjamin Smith, said,
“Over the past four years, Marjan and her teams have worked tirelessly to restore KLM’s capacity in the post-Covid era, facing an adverse Dutch aviation environment with significant increases of taxes and uncontrollable external costs. The demanding work on restoring operational and financial performance will continue in the years ahead, and I am confident that with Marjan’s resolve and leadership, KLM will reach its targets, bringing strong value to our Group. The Group will increase its support to KLM and ensure additional synergies are found. Marjan has my full trust and support to tackle the considerable challenges that KLM faces.”
Also commenting on the reappointment of Marjan Rintel, KLM’s Supervisory Board Chairman, Wiebe Draijer, said,
“In the coming period, the challenges facing KLM remain significant. The Supervisory board fully supports Marjan’s initiative to drive structural improvement in results through substantial changes in governance. We have full confidence that KLM, as part of Air France-KLM Group - under Marjan’s leadership, together with the other members of the senior management team and all KLM employees - can successfully deliver this transformation in order to reach the Group’s overall financial targets.”
Marjan Rintel added,
“KLM operates in a challenging and highly competitive environment. To be successful in that context, we must have a solid operational and financial foundation. That is why we are intensifying and accelerating our transformation. We will take structural measures to simplify our organization, improve our operation, increase our revenue, and reduce our costs. Together with my colleagues in the Management Board, I will be more directly involved in overseeing the operation with the aim of meeting customer expectations and achieving healthy returns.”
KLM has also announced that the airline’s Chief Operating Officer (COO) Maarten Stienen has decided to step down from his position following the KLM shareholders’ meeting in May 2026. Therefore, KLM is initiating a careful process to appoint a new COO, considering candidates both from within and outside the company.
Source: KLM Royal Dutch Airlines