John E. Luth
Chairman, President and CEO
John Luth is the founding partner and chief executive of the Seabury Group. Mr. Luth leads major aviation and aerospace advisory assignments, and has advised on over $50 billion of new aircraft orders, over $30 billion of debt and equity capital transactions, and led airline restructurings involving over $50 billion of obligations.
Most recently, Mr. Luth led an out-of-court restructuring for Republic Airways’ regional jet subsidiary, Chautauqua Airlines (2012), and Frontier Airlines (2011), assisted a major Middle East carrier with respect to NewGen widebody orders (2011), and completed a highly successful NewGen widebody aircraft campaign for Cathay Pacific Airways (in 2010), the later resulting in Cathay ordering 30 firm A350s and six firm 777s. Mr. Luth led similar efforts for Air Canada leading to an order of 60 firm and option 787s and 18/18 firm/option 777s and assisted US Airways on renegotiating billions of new aircraft orders (2010). In 2009, Mr. Luth led capital raises for Air Canada ($1.0 billion) that was coupled with a $500 million annual cost reduction program organized and directed by Seabury, and raised $1.1 billion that year for US Airways Group Inc. in the midst of a global credit crisis. Mr. Luth also completed in 2009 successful M&A assignments for two smaller US carriers. He led the Northwest Airlines’ financial restructuring (2005-2007), including securing $750 million of new equity, $1.2 billion of exit debt financing and restructuring of over $10 billion of debt and lease obligations.
Bijoy Mechery
Senior Managing Director, Head of Solutions
Bijoy Mechery joined the Seabury Group in January 2002 as a Managing Director as well as Chief Executive Officer of Seabury’s IT software consulting and development firm, Seabury Enterprise Solutions, LLC (SES). SES provides comprehensive IT consulting services to Seabury’s aviation and private equity clients including vendor selection, IT spend analysis and improvement and IT due diligence. SES has also developed a suite of proprietary, cross industry, decision support and analysis applications including what Seabury believes to be the most robust and comprehensive airline enterprise assessment software (Seabury’s Airline Performance Analysis System, or “APAS”).
James Szymanski
Senior Vice President
James Szymanski joined the Seabury Group in September 2003 and has over 20 years of airline and information technology experience. As an executive within Seabury’s IT software consulting and development firm, Seabury Enterprise Solutions, LLC (SES), Mr Szymanski has assisted clients on a range of projects including technology vendor selection, IT due diligence, business process development and reengineering and development and implementation of proprietary SES applications.
Brent Heath
Vice President
Brent Heath joined the Seabury Group in 2002 and has 15 years of Information Technology experience including project management, product development, IT strategy and systems integration. His airline experience includes flight profitability, financial analysis and revenue accounting. Mr. Heath is the designer and product manager for Seabury's proprietary flight profitability solution, APAS. In addition to managing the implementation at several major airlines, he has consulted with numerous airlines regarding cost allocation methodology and process.
Ravi Kumar Kanagala
Vice President
Ravi Kumar Kanagala joined the Seabury Group in 2002 as Principal and has more than 19 years of extensive information technology experience including project management & business process integration/improvement. Mr. Kanagala is responsible for managing the procurement & implementation of IT solutions, streamlining the IT Support activities and serves as lead technical architect for software solutions.
