An airline industry veteran is returning to Victoria to take the reins of the Victoria International Airport.
Elizabeth Brown has been named the new chief executive of the Victoria Airport Authority and will step into the role Sept. 18 to replace the retiring Geoff Dickson.
“The VAA board of directors is thrilled to have Elizabeth as our new CEO and president. We are confident that with her extensive aviation and airport background, VAA will continue to thrive,” said board chair Cathie Ounsted.
Brown was president at TBI US Airports, the organization responsible for the operation of the Orlando Sanford International Airport and has years of international experience in airport business development.
She has previously held the role of chief commercial officer at Cross Border Xpress, a pedestrian border crossing between San Diego and the Tijuana International Airport and at Vantage Airport Group, where she developed and implemented a marketing program for Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay, Jamaica.
“It has long been a dream to be able to return to Victoria and contribute meaningfully to the continued success of the Victoria International Airport,” said Brown. “I am honoured and excited to be selected to lead the Victoria Airport Authority and look forward to working with the dedicated team who have not only seen the airport through significant challenges, but have laid out a path of continued growth and development to serve the needs of the Capital Region and Vancouver Island.”
Dickson leaves the authority after 12 years.
In that time the airport has seen significant growth with a 40 per cent increase in the number of passengers through its gates – there were more than two million a year pre-pandemic, though 2022 saw 1.49 million.
The airport also played a bigger economic role in the region, making space on its land for businesses like Sobeys and Amazon to set up large distribution centres.
The airport undertook major capital improvements under Dickson’s leadership, including modernization of the terminal building, improving runway safety and increases to airfield capacity.
Dickson will be staying on until the end of September.
“On behalf of the Board I would like to thank Geoff Dickson for his immense contributions to VAA over the past 12 years, and particularly for his leadership during the recent COVID-19 pandemic. Our community is better off for his efforts, and we wish him all the best and a happy retirement,” said Ounsted.
