White named Surf Air Mobility CEO and COO

Surf Air Mobility has appointed Deanna White to the position of Chief Executive Officer & Chief Operating Officer.

The former president of Flexjet has been serving as the Los Angeles-based aviation company’s Interim CEO and COO since May.

She had previously served as Surf Air’s’ Chief Financial Officer from May 2022 to December 2023 before briefly exiting.

Chairman Carl Albert said, “Deanna’s clear vision of the company’s future and her proven track record make her perfectly suited to continue to lead Surf Air.”

He added, “Deanna has earned her appointment as Surf Air Mobility CEO & COO as the company continues to execute its Transformation Plan and works to bring its airline operations to profitability in the near term.”

White also served as COO at Kitty Hawk, leading the business operations and commercialization of an R&D eVTOL aircraft program.

The program was sold to Boeing during her tenure and subsequently rebranded as Wisk Aero.

White said, “Becoming a profitable airline operation is the primary goal of the second phase of our TransformationI’man. I’m confident in our ability to reach that milestone in 2025 with a business that requires less capital to operate and a much-strengthened balance sheet.”

The company describes itself as a regional air mobility platform, the largest commuter airline in the U.S. by scheduled departures, and the largest passenger operator of Cessna Caravans in the U.S.

It is currently developing an AI-powered airline software operating system and working toward certification of electric powertrain technology.

As part of the transition, the company merged with commuter airline Southern Airways last year.

It has largely abandoned its original offering of by-the-seat, all-you-can-fly memberships on the Pilatus PC-12, first within California and then to Texas after acquiring Rise in 2017.