Press release - 15 April 2019 14:08

Niels Smedegaard nominated as Chair of the Board

Niels Smedegaard (b. 1962) is the President and CEO of DFDS and has previously held leading positions in companies like Gate Gourmet Group, Swissair and SAS. He is a Danish citizen.

The Nomination Committee recommends that Smedegaard is elected as a new member of the Board of Directors and that the Board considers electing him as the new Chair of the Board.

The Nomination Committee also nominates Ingrid Elvira Leisner as a member of the Board.

The new Board of Directors will be elected at Norwegian’s Annual General Meeting on May 7.

Please see the notice for Annual General Meeting for more information.

Topics

Norwegian in the UK and Ireland:

Norwegian carries almost 6 million UK passengers each year from London Gatwick, Edinburgh and Manchester Airports to 30 destinations worldwide
Norwegian is the third largest airline at London Gatwick, with 4.6 million yearly passengers, and with more than 1,000 UK-based pilots and cabin crew
In 2014, Norwegian introduced the UK’s first low-cost, long haul flights to the U.S. - the airline now flies to 12 U.S destinations, Buenos Aires and Rio de Janeiro from London Gatwick
In 2017, Norwegian also launched affordable transatlantic flights from Edinburgh, Dublin, Cork and Shannon to the US East Coast.
Norwegian is the only airline to offer free inflight WiFi on UK flights to more than 30 European destinations
The airline has one of the youngest aircraft fleets in the world with an average age of 3.8 years, including next-generation Boeing 787 Dreamliner, Boeing 737 MAX and Boeing 737-800s
Norwegian has been voted ‘Europe’s best low-cost carrier’ by passengers for six consecutive years at SkyTrax World Airline Awards from 2013-2018, along with being awarded the ‘World's best low-cost long-haul airline’ in 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018
Norwegian Reward is the airline's free to join award-winning loyalty programme offering members CashPoints and Rewards that reduce the cost of Norwegian flights

Contacts

For journalists only

Press contact Norwegian Press Office press@norwegian.com +47 815 11 816

Marketing/sponsorhip requests: marketing@norwegian.com

Press contact Marketing/sponsorship requests: marketing@norwegian.com

Norwegian.com

The Norwegian group is a leading Nordic aviation company, headquartered at Fornebu outside Oslo, Norway. The company has over 8,200 employees and owns two of the prominent airlines in the Nordics: Norwegian Air Shuttle and Widerøe’s Flyveselskap. Widerøe was acquired by Norwegian in 2024, aiming to facilitate seamless air travel across the two airline’s networks.

Norwegian Air Shuttle, the largest Norwegian airline with around 4,700 employees, operates an extensive route network connecting Nordic countries to key European destinations. In 2023, Norwegian carried over 20 million passengers and maintained a fleet of 87 Boeing 737-800 and 737 MAX 8 aircraft.

Widerøe’s Flyveselskap, Norway’s oldest airline, is Scandinavia’s largest regional carrier. The airline has more than 3,500 employees. Mainly operating the short-runway airports in rural Norway, Widerøe operates several state contract routes (PSO routes) in addition to its own commercial network. In 2023, the airline had 3.3 million passengers and a fleet of 48 aircraft, including 45 Bombardier Dash 8’s and three Embraer E190-E2's. Widerøe Ground Handling provides ground handling services at 41 Norwegian airports.

The Norwegian group has sustainability as a key priority and has committed to significantly reducing carbon emissions from its operations. Among numerous initiatives, the most noteworthy is the investment in production and use of fossil-free aviation fuel (SAF). Norwegian strives to become the sustainable choice for its passengers, actively contributing to the transformation of the aviation industry.