Etihad Airways has appointed Shane O’Hare as its new senior vice president of marketing.

O’Hare joins the Abu-Dhabi-based airline following seven years as president and chief executive of Royal Jet, a private jet company in the Middle East. He has also held senior marketing roles at Gulf Air, Star Alliance and Ansett.

In his new role, O’Hare will be responsible for developing the airline’s marketing strategy, and for leading its successful implementation across commercial strategies, brand management, communications, product and service development, and sales and distribution strategies.

James Hogan, Etihad Airways president and chief executive officer, said: “Shane is one of the world’s outstanding airline marketeers, having delivered highly successful airline and alliance strategies again and again. He also has an astute commercial understanding, further honed during his successful and profitable leadership of Royal Jet.

“As Etihad Airways extends its reach into new markets, we want to take our brand positioning and marketing strategy up another level. Shane is the ideal leader for that role,” added Hogan.

O’Hare has been replaced at Royal Jet by Patrick Gordon, who will take on the role of chief executive and acting president.