Aviation agency hires new CFO

Federal Aviation Administrator Marion Blakey has tapped Ramesh Punwani as the agency's new chief financial officer. Punwani, succeeds John Hennigan, who held the position of acting CFO for 13 months.

As CFO, Punwani will administer the FAA's $14 billion budget and the agencywide application of cost accounting and financial management systems. Most recently, Punwani was the senior vice president for global strategy at Cendant Corp.

Punwani's corporate jobs include CFO and vice president positions for Pan American World Airways, Tower Air and Trans World Airlines. Before Cendant, Punwani was the executive vice president and CFO of Travelocity. He has also been vice president of tour and cruise relations and director of business development for American Express, and senior vice president and CFO for Empire HealthChoice Assurance Inc.'s Blue Cross and Blue Shield.

Punwani received a Master of Business Administration degree from New York University in 1978 and a Master of Engineering in management science from Cornell University in 1966. Punwani also holds a Bachelor of Technology degree in industrial engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology in Mumbai, India.