Young Boss for Aer Lingus

The day of whiz-kid promotions in the corporate world is fading, but it is not quite over. Next month, David Kennedy assumes office as chief executive of Ireland's national airline, Aer Lingus-Irish at the age of 35. Kennedy, a former Irish chess champion with a dry wit, has made it to the top of the $100 million-a-year line in twelve years. One of these was spent in the U.S., from which Aer Lingus gets much of its traffic, and the others in Ireland, mostly devoted to computerizing the line's operations. He succeeds Michael J. Dargan, who is retiring because he feels "after seven or ten years you have given all you can."

Kennedy takes over one of the few national airlines that expect to fly at a profit this year. That is due partly to the line's acquisition of a big London hotel and two of Ireland's biggest tour-promotion agencies, which has increased its ability to book charter groups into package tours. Another reason is Aer Lingus' long policy of offering high standards but low-cost, no-frills service; over the years it has kept as much as 13% more of its seats occupied than any other line flying the North Atlantic. Kennedy pledges to continue both policies and to cut costs further. But he warns that spiraling fuel prices, now almost 2 1/2 times higher than a year ago, will make it "extremely difficult for any line to keep its head above water" unless governments permit some fare increases.

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