NAIROBI, Kenya — 2 September 2026: Kenya Airways has announced the resignation of Captain George Kamal as acting group managing director and chief executive officer, saying he is leaving for personal reasons. Kamal will remain with the airline during a transition period and formally exit on 30 September. The board has appointed company secretary and legal director Habil Waswani to become acting CEO on 15 September while it recruits a permanent leader.
Has George Kamal resigned from Kenya Airways? Yes. Kenya Airways announced on 1 September 2026 that Kamal had resigned as acting group managing director and CEO for personal reasons. He will remain through a transition period, while Habil Waswani assumes the acting role on 15 September and the board searches for a permanent chief.
A planned handover through the end of September
The Kenya Airways board announcement says Kamal resigned for personal reasons. It does not describe the decision as a dismissal and does not connect his departure to a particular operational or financial event.
Kamal will continue serving during a 30-day transition period before his formal exit on 30 September. The overlap is designed to give Waswani time to take over while the board continues a competitive search for a substantive group managing director and CEO.
The dates create a two-stage change. Waswani’s acting appointment takes effect on 15 September, while Kamal remains in service until the end of the month. The board did not publish a timetable for naming the permanent chief beyond saying that recruitment had begun and should be completed in the near term.
Citizen Digital reported the resignation and appointment from the airline’s statement. The Star also confirmed the effective date and the board’s intention to recruit a permanent leader.
Kamal’s route from operations to the top office
Kamal joined Kenya Airways’ executive leadership as chief operating officer and held that position for three years. He became acting group managing director and CEO on 16 December 2025 during the airline’s previous leadership transition.
The board credited him with helping stabilise operations and leading the executive team’s implementation of the carrier’s turnaround strategy. His period in the top office lasted less than nine months, but it came during a demanding phase for one of Africa’s best-known airlines.
TRANSPORT AND AIRLINES
George Kamal Resigns as Kenya Airways Acting CEO
Sep 2, 2026
Sep 2, 2026
5 min read
Published
Updated:
NAIROBI, Kenya — 2 September 2026: Kenya Airways has announced the resignation of Captain George Kamal as acting group managing director and chief executive officer, saying he is leaving for personal reasons. Kamal will remain with the airline during a transition period and formally exit on 30 September. The board has appointed company secretary and legal director Habil Waswani to become acting CEO on 15 September while it recruits a permanent leader.
Has George Kamal resigned from Kenya Airways? Yes. Kenya Airways announced on 1 September 2026 that Kamal had resigned as acting group managing director and CEO for personal reasons. He will remain through a transition period, while Habil Waswani assumes the acting role on 15 September and the board searches for a permanent chief.
A planned handover through the end of September
The Kenya Airways board announcement says Kamal resigned for personal reasons. It does not describe the decision as a dismissal and does not connect his departure to a particular operational or financial event.
Kamal will continue serving during a 30-day transition period before his formal exit on 30 September. The overlap is designed to give Waswani time to take over while the board continues a competitive search for a substantive group managing director and CEO.
The dates create a two-stage change. Waswani’s acting appointment takes effect on 15 September, while Kamal remains in service until the end of the month. The board did not publish a timetable for naming the permanent chief beyond saying that recruitment had begun and should be completed in the near term.
Citizen Digital reported the resignation and appointment from the airline’s statement. The Star also confirmed the effective date and the board’s intention to recruit a permanent leader.
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Kamal’s route from operations to the top office
Kamal joined Kenya Airways’ executive leadership as chief operating officer and held that position for three years. He became acting group managing director and CEO on 16 December 2025 during the airline’s previous leadership transition.
The board credited him with helping stabilise operations and leading the executive team’s implementation of the carrier’s turnaround strategy. His period in the top office lasted less than nine months, but it came during a demanding phase for one of Africa’s best-known airlines.
Kenya Airways has been working to improve operational reliability, optimise its network and fleet, restore sustainable financial performance and identify a strategic investor. Those priorities will continue after the leadership change, according to the company announcement.
The carrier also operates in a region where aviation decisions can have diplomatic and commercial effects beyond Kenya. XTRAfrica previously covered the airline’s suspension of Kinshasa flights during an employee-detention dispute and the subsequent release of the detained staff. The new CEO will inherit responsibility for maintaining that regional network while addressing the airline’s internal recovery goals.
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Who is Habil Waswani?
Waswani is Kenya Airways’ company secretary and director of legal services and regulatory compliance. The company says he has worked at the airline for more than five years, handling aviation-related legal matters as well as commercial and corporate law.
His career spans more than 24 years and includes corporate-governance roles in listed banking and insurance institutions. Kenya Airways says he holds a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Nairobi, a diploma from the Kenya School of Law and a Global Executive MBA from United States International University in collaboration with Columbia Business School.
Waswani is also a Certified Public Secretary and belongs to the Law Society of Kenya, the Institute of Certified Secretaries of Kenya and the Institute of Directors of Kenya. The Standard’s account confirms that his interim mandate begins on 15 September and that the board has given him its support.
His appointment moves the airline’s chief legal and governance officer into operational leadership. That background could be important as Kenya Airways works through shareholder expectations, regulatory obligations, financing needs and the search for a strategic investor.
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What the transition means for Kenya Airways
The immediate priority is continuity. Kamal’s transition period, Waswani’s mid-month start and the permanent recruitment process are structured to avoid an abrupt leadership gap.
The larger test is whether the change affects the pace of the turnaround programme. Kenya Airways says the strategy remains focused on reliability, sustainable positive financial performance and growth. It has not announced a change to those goals.
The next chief will also operate in a difficult external environment. Fuel prices, aircraft availability and global supply-chain pressures can quickly affect African carriers. XTRAfrica’s earlier examination of Africa’s exposure to jet-fuel shocks shows why leadership continuity matters for airlines that depend on international fuel, maintenance and financing markets.
For passengers and employees, the announcement does not by itself change published schedules or customer procedures. The next verifiable milestones are Waswani’s assumption of office on 15 September, Kamal’s formal exit on 30 September and the board’s eventual naming of a permanent group managing director and CEO.
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