No crash and burn here

TURBULENT: ORSMOND TAKES WILD RIDE IN WORLD OF LOW-COST AIRLINES

- Hein Kaiser

Executive went through tough times in SA aviation and lives to tells the tale.

He has huge kahunas. Airline executive Glen Orsmond has been through some of the worst times in SA aviation and when the going got tough, several times over, he just kept going.

A large part of his newly released book documents his on-off affair with Comair, once an iconic and globally respected airline.

Orsmond presided over Comair's tanking, vicious protests with placards demanding his departure, survived boardroom duels to the death, duplicity on a Shakespearian scale and egos the size of the Empire State building.

And most of that was at the purportedly squeaky-clean example of successful privateering, Comair.

Comair was a 75-year-old company, globally admired with 74 years of consecutive profits, says Orsmond.

"The story needs to be told about what made Comair great and what caused its sudden collapse," he says.

"My 30-year career has been closely intertwined with Comair through three stints working there and twice competing against Comair - giving me insight into the Comair story." His book, Crash and Burn, a CEO's crazy adventures in the South African airline industry, is a chronicle that probably plays itself out in many industries but few are as sexy as the airline game.

"The book is not about me nor is it a business strategy or leadership book. I simply provide my insights gained through my interactions with Comair," he adds.

And it is a common thread throughout the book.

Comair projected a moral high ground but it was a myth, according to Orsmond.

"Businesses need to be profitable to survive without compromising ethics, calling Comair saintly might not be the right word," he says.