Thorpe to step down as ONT chief executive officer

Mark Thorpe will step down as chief executive officer of the Ontario International Airport Authority.

Thorpe submitted a letter of resignation today and will remain on special assignment until March 31, the day his resignation becomes effective, according to a statement on the airport’s website.
The statement did not elaborate on what Thorpe’s duties will be during the next two and half months. No interim chief executive officer has been appointed, and a search for Thorpe’s permanent successor has not begun, said Steve Lambert, airport spokesman.

“On behalf of the airport authority, I commend Mark for his leadership in the revival of Ontario International Airport as a premier aviation gateway since our return to local ownership,” said Alan D. Wapner, president of the authority’s board of commissioners, in the statement.

“In his four-plus years as chief executive officer, Mark and his team have helped establish Ontario International as one of the most competitive and customer-friendly passenger and cargo airports in the United States and a major economic engine for the Inland Empire and Southern California.”

Thorpe joined the authority as development officer in 2016, three months before the airport was transferred to local control. Before that he held executive positions at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport and Los Angeles World Airports.

Thorpe was reportedly a finalist for the chief executive officer’s position at Orlando International Airport. That position was filled this week by Kevin Thibault, Florida’s transportation secretary.