Following the retirement of Tom Perry, Textron Aviation has appointed Duncan Van De Velde as vice president of sales, Europe.

Van De Velde is responsible for leading the regional sales team, as well as developing and overseeing the sales of Beechcraft and Cessna products and coordinates the authorised sales representatives based throughout the territory.

He re-joins Textron Aviation following four years at Bell Helicopter as the managing director for Europe and Russia, driving an integrated sales team to promote Bell's commercial aircraft and give support to European and Russian customers. Prior to this role, Duncan served as director of aftermarket sales for the Europe, Middle East and Africa region at Textron Aviation.

“We thank Tom Perry for his more than 25 years of service, industry leadership, commitment to growing and serving our customers and wish him all the best in his retirement,” says, Lannie O'Bannion, senior vice president, global sales and flight operations. “Duncan brings nearly 30 years' worth of aviation experience and is a valuable asset to this role based on his vast international experience and strong understanding of our European footprint and customers' needs.”