Private jet company Wheels Up announced yesterday that its founder and CEO, Kenny Dichter, is stepping down from his post immediately as the company faces mounting losses and the potential for bankruptcy, CNBC.com reported. Board member Ravi Thakran will become executive chairman, while Chief Financial Officer Todd Smith will serve as interim CEO, the company said in a statement. Wheels Up didn’t give a reason for the executive changes, but thanked Dichter for his “vision and work” in growing revenue to over $1.5 billion a year and membership to over 12,000 customers. Dichter’s departure caps a dramatic fall for one of the private jet industry’s most high-profile startups. Wheels Up once promised to become the Uber or Airbnb of private jets. Dichter, who founded Marquis Jets in 2001 and later sold it to NetJets, launched Wheels Up in 2013 aiming to “democratize” private jets and make them more affordable and easier to book.
