Rafael Alonso retires after 40 years of industry leadership

Following a long journey as a key protagonist in Latin America and the Caribbean’s commercial aviation industry, Rafael Alonso, President of Airbus for the region, has retired after a nearly 40-year career.

Rafael, known for his pioneering spirit, enhanced Airbus’ presence, evolution and influence throughout Latin America and the Caribbean and was directly involved in more than 2,000 aircraft sales. Among many industry accolades, including ALTA’s Alas de América Award and ICAO’s Leader in Aviation Community in Latin America Award, Rafael orchestrated the historic Three Amigos Deal that brought together competitors LAN, TACA and TAM to the negotiating table and ultimately led to the joint purchase of 100 A320s—the largest commercial aviation deal in history at the time.

But moreover, Rafael credits his team for Airbus’ success in the region. “The Dream Team,” a well-known moniker within the company for Rafael’s Miami-based team, acted as catalysts for the development of the low cost carrier market in the region—now dominated by Airbus—and won several strategic, hard-fought campaigns to expand and secure Airbus’ firm market leadership in Latin America.

Many would find that Airbus is well-positioned for continued success in the region due in large part to Rafael’s leadership and vision. His successor, Arturo Barreira, is also a Spanish native, and was appointed Vice President of Sales for Latin America and the Caribbean in 2012. He previously held the position of Regional Sales Director since 2005.

As a leading member of the Latin America and Caribbean Sales Team which has booked record-breaking orders over the last 10 years, Arturo has been instrumental in developing key relationships with the region’s leading airlines and stakeholders. Arturo’s keen market understanding make him uniquely qualified to lead the Airbus Latin America team into the future and solidify its place as the market leader in the region.