Temel Kotil (born 3 December 1959, Rize) served as the General Manager and Deputy Chairman of the Executive Board at Turkish Airlines between 2005 and 2016. He was appointed as the General Manager of TAI on October 21, 2016.
Kotil was born in 1959 in the Araklı neighborhood of Gündoğdu town in Rize. He graduated from Istanbul Technical University (ITU) Aeronautical Engineering Department in 1983, received his master's degree in "Aeronautical Engineering" from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, USA in 1986, and his second master's degree in Mechanical Engineering from the same university in 1987, in 1991. He also completed his doctorate in "Mechanical Engineering" at the University of Michigan.
Kotil was the founder and manager of Aviation and Advanced Composites Laboratories at ITU Faculty of Aeronautics and Astronautics between 1991-93. Serving as an Assistant Professor and Associate Professor at ITU Faculty of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Kotil served as the Deputy Head of the Department and Deputy Dean of the Faculty in 1993-94 at the same faculty.
After serving as the Head of the Research, Planning and Coordination Department of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality, he served as a visiting professor at the University of Illinois in the USA in 2001 and later served as the Head of the Research and Engineering Department at Advanced Innovative Technologies Inc. in New York.
He teaches at the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Istanbul University. Kotil, who is married and has four children, has many research and scientific publications.
Turkish Airlines career
- He started his career at THY in 2003 as Technical Assistant General Manager.
- He was appointed as the General Manager of Turkish Airlines in 2005.
- In 2006, he was elected as a Board Member of the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
- In 2010, he was elected to the Board of Directors of the European Airline Association (AEA).
- As of January 1, 2014, he was elected President of the European Airline Association (AEA).
- As of October 21, 2016, he left his duty at Turkish Airlines and joined TUSAŞ - Turkish Aerospace Industries. He was appointed as the General Manager.
Awards
- 2009 Istanbul Tourism Special Award
- 2014 Aviation Leader of the Year Award
- 2014 Airline Strategy Awards – CEO of the Year Award
- 2015 Austrian Order of Merit