... and Gennady Kurzenkov to Federal Service for the Supervision of Transport.
For many, it should come as no surprise that Alexander Neradko, former head of the Federal Air Navigation Service, has been appointed head of the refurbished Federal Air Service (Rosaviatsia). Gennady Kurzenkov, who worked at the Federal Service for the Supervision of Transport in 2007 and 2008, until he was appointed head of Rosaviatsia on October 13, 2008, has returned to the Federal Service for the Supervision of Transport.
This marks the fifth reshuffling in the Federal Air Service in the past five years, though analysts and market operators are hopeful that the qualifications and respect Mr Neradko has earned throughout his career will allow him to hold on to the position for more than a mere year.
According to Kommersant's sources, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin signed a relevant resolution on December 14, but no official statement has been posted on the government's website. Likewise, the Prime Minister's press service refused to comment on the matter.
A source in the Transport Ministry revealed that Minister Igor Levitin had in fact submitted his recommendations on the appointment of Mr Neradko to head of the Federal Air Service and Mr Kurzenkov to head of the Federal Service for the Supervision of Transport, but refused to elaborate until the relevant government instruction is made public.
Mr Neradko and Mr Kurzenkov were not accepting calls yesterday. Mr Kurzenkov has been on leave since Monday.
Mr Neradko, born in 1961, graduated from the Moscow Institute of Civil Aviation Engineering in 1984. In 1997, he was appointed head of state supervision of flight safety at the Federal Aviation Service and the Federal Service for Air Transport. From August 2000 to March 2004, he served as first deputy minister of transport and head of the State Civil Aviation Service. From March 2004 to October 2005, he headed the Federal Service for the Supervision of Transport. Then, in October 2005, he was appointed head of the Federal Air Navigation Service.
In September, President Dmitry Medvedev signed a decree on abolishing the Federal Air Navigation Service (see the Kommersant issue of September 14) and transferring its powers and functions to the Federal Air Service.
Soon after, in December, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin signed a resolution on the procedure for reorganising the agencies that supervise air transport, which calls for the functions and powers of the Federal Air Navigation Service to be transferred to the Federal Air Service by March 2010.
The goal is to consolidate the management powers and functions in civil aviation that were divided up among several agencies during 2004's administrative reform.
Market operators suggested the idea a long time ago, using other countries as an example.
A source in the Transport Ministry explained that there were no formal complaints about Mr Kurzenkov when he headed the Federal Air Service, but market operators had a divided opinion on his decisions. As airline representatives see it, it is not the person who heads Rosaviatsia that matters, but the timeline within which he will fulfils his duties.
"This is the fifth reshuffling since the service was set up in 2004, which is the main problem for the sector", said a top manager of a large air carrier. As he pointed out, Mr Neradko has been head of the state civil aviation service, knows its specifics, and could therefore learn the ropes rather quickly.
Analysts welcome the latest reshuffling. Oleg Panteleyev, chief analyst at the Aviaport agency, noted that the choice made by the Transport Ministry and the government was actually predetermined, as the only strong candidates for the post were Alexander Neradko and Valery Okulov.
"Mr Okulov is currently deputy transport minister, so it was only logical to appoint Alexander Neradko to the post," Mr Panteleyev said.
In his opinion, Mr Kurzenkov's "firm and consistent" efforts to uphold civil aviation norms and rules could prove to be quite useful in his capacity as head of the Federal Service for the Supervision of Transport.
Boris Rybak, head of the Infomost consultancy, expressed the belief that professionals such as Valery Okulov and Alexander Neradko would "restore the proper management of the aviation sector, which has gotten lost somehow in the past few years."
Overall, analysts are of the opinion that Mr Neradko's appointment will bring the period of temporary management in the sector to an end, and that his experience and connections in state bodies will enable him to govern the unified Federal Air Service efficiently.
By Alexander Yekimovsky