Viasat taps former Delta Airlines exec as new CFO (original) (raw)

Viasat, the Carlsbad company that connects businesses, governments and consumers to the Internet, has hired a former Delta Air Lines executive as its new chief financial officer.

The company announced Wednesday that Gary Chase — who led Delta’s corporate financial strategy and reported directly to the CEO during his 12-year tenure — will join Viasat on Sept. 16. Prior to overseeing various financial and investor operations at the airline, Chase was a managing director in equity research at Barclays Capital and Lehman Brothers.

Viasat’s CEO Mark Dankberg said in the announcement that Chase will play a “pivotal financial and business oversight role for Viasat, with emphasis on data systems architecture and linking operational and financial metrics, delivering efficiencies, and optimizing our capital structure.”

Delta Air Lines is one of Viasat’s many commercial aviation customers, and last year the airline expanded its partnership to include Wi-Fi connectivity for its international flights. Viasat also provides in-flight connectivity for JetBlue, United Airlines, American Airlines and Virgin America, to name a few.

“We are thrilled to welcome Gary to Viasat and look forward to adding his expertise in scaled operational financial systems to support our growth objectives,” Dankberg said. “Gary’s extensive operational experience, and his perspective as a Viasat customer, make him well positioned to increase financial and operational automation and rigor, and sharpen our focus on cash generation and Inmarsat integration.”

Carlsbad’s Viasat named Gary Chase, a former Delta Air Lines executive, as its next chief financial officer.

Chase will receive a $475,000 sign-on bonus and certain equity awards, according to Viasat’s SEC filing. He will also be paid an annual base salary and an annual target bonus “substantially consistent” with that of its current CFO, Shawn Duffy.

During the fiscal year ending March 31, Duffy received an annual base salary of $660,000 and had a target bonus of 90 percent of annual base salary.

Duffy, Viasat’s former chief financial officer, is staying with the company and moving into a newly created role of chief accounting officer. She has been Viasat’s CFO since 2014, during which time the company’s “revenues have more than tripled to $4.5 billion,” Dankberg said.

For many years, Viasat was known for providing Internet connectivity and communication services for military clients and business enterprises, such as Wi-Fi for commercial airlines. More recently, the company has made efforts to grow its consumer and Internet of Things business segments through its $7 billion acquisition of European satellite firm Inmarsat.

“I am excited to join Viasat as its next CFO at such an important time in the company’s history,” Chase said. “I have a tremendous amount of respect for Viasat’s businesses and its global mission of delivering safety and connectivity to customers in the air, at sea, and on land.”

Originally Published: August 29, 2024 at 2:53 p.m.