oneworld Appoints Ole Orvér as CEO Starting April 1

FORT WORTH — oneworld Alliance has chosen Swedish aviation executive Ole Orvér as its next Chief Executive Officer. He will begin his role on April 1, 2026.

Orvér was most recently Chief Commercial Officer at Finnair (AY) and has also held senior positions such as SVP Network Management at Qatar Airways (QR). He has led teams at airberlin (AB), LOT Polish Airlines (LO), and SAS (SK).

Robert Isom, chair of oneworld’s governing board and CEO of American Airlines (AA), said Orvér will support new “customer-first initiatives” and strengthen the alliance’s value for members and travelers.

Orvér takes over from outgoing CEO Nathaniel Pieper, who has joined American (AA) as Chief Commercial Officer.

A Second Warm Welcome to North America

Last September, Finnair CEO Turkka Kuusisto met with U.S. media for the first time at an exclusive breakfast roundtable. 

Joined by Javier Roig-Sanchez, the airline’s newly appointed General Manager for North America, the discussion centered on AY’s strategy for the rest of 2025 and beyond, its U.S. growth ambitions, and the Nordic region’s rising appeal for American travelers.

Roig-Sanchez opened the morning by reflecting on his three decades with AY and his recent move across the Atlantic:

“I came only in March to Dallas, Texas. Not to New York, not to Chicago, but Dallas—and it has a large meaning behind it,” he explained. “We fly to six airports in the U.S., but our strong partnership with American Airlines makes Dallas, their home hub, a logical base for me... North America is a market I feel increasingly comfortable in.”

I mention this because oneworld Alliance moved its global headquarters from New York City to Fort Worth, Texas, in December 2022. This means Orvér, while busy with his new role, will be closer to Roig-Sanchez to help triad AY's operations in North America, one would like to speculate.

But the headline is that oneworld is choosing a CEO with a strong background in commercial strategy and integration. Orvér’s experience in network planning, partnerships, and loyalty or revenue programs matches a time when alliances stand out not by their branding, but by how well member airlines share benefits, technology, and premium experiences throughout the journey.

The key responsibilities and focus areas of the CEO of the second major global airline alliance to be founded include:

• Strategic Leadership: Leading the alliance to deliver value to member airlines and fostering collaboration to act as one unified global entity.
• Customer Experience: Enhancing the "premium" travel experience by aligning commercial policies and integrating digital ecosystems across all carriers.
• Alliance Management: Strengthening relationships between the 13+ member airlines (e.g., American, British Airways, Qatar) and overseeing the onboarding of new members.
• Governance & Reporting: Reporting to the Governing Board (comprised of member airline CEOs).
• Innovation & Growth: Driving digital strategy, including improving technology for a seamless,, customer-focused journey.