International aircraft leasing company Avolon appointed three new independent non-executive directors to its board: Ciarán Ó hÓgartaigh, Joe Nellis and Denis Kalscheur, who joined on January 4, 2017.

Nellis, who joined GE Capital in 1990, was most recently a managing director of the business development team at GE Capital which oversaw the signing and closing of nearly $200 billion of transactions in a 24-month period as part of GE’s transition to become a more focused, digital industrial company.

Ó hÓgartaigh is professor of accounting and dean of University College Dublin (UCD) College of Business. He has been published in international peer-reviewed journals on audit and accounting matters and he also serves on a number of audit committees including the audit committee of Ireland’s Department of Finance.

Kalscheur is a 25-year aviation industry veteran and previously served in both vice chairman and CEO roles at Aviation Capital Group.

Following these appointments, the Avolon Board will comprise nine directors: four independent non-executive directors, three non-executive directors (including the chairman of the board) and two executive directors.

On joining the board, Ó hÓgartaigh was appointed chair of the audit committee, Nellis was appointed chair of the remuneration committee and Kalscheur was appointed chair of the nominating and governance committee.

Adam Tan, Avolon chairman, said, “We are delighted to announce the appointment of three new independent directors to our board. Each of Ciarán, Denis and Joe brings different but complementary skills to our board and their expertise will be invaluable as we continue to build Avolon into a global sector leader. Effective corporate governance and oversight is central to long-term business success. A strong, experienced and independent board, which works to protect all stakeholder interests, is central to our strategy to build Avolon into a global leader in aircraft leasing.”

Avolon CEO, Dómhnal Slattery, added, “Our board has been significantly strengthened with the addition of our three new independent directors. They bring with them deep experience across different business sectors. Together with the Avolon team, I look forward to working with them as we continue to build Avolon into the premier player in aircraft leasing.”