British Airways: Sir Colin: has every fact and figure at his command

SIR COLIN MARSHALL never hid his desire to succeed to the chairmanship of British Airways, but he might have preferred a more propitious moment to take over.

A one-time cadet purser who skipped university and went straight from school into a career, the new BA chairman is the arch-technician with every fact and figure about every aspect of the business at his fingertips.

With his clipped mid-Atlantic tones and management textbook style of presentation, Sir Colin could just as easily be running a fast-food franchise as an airline. But what he excels in is the ability to run a service business - such as flying.

Contemporaries regard Sir Colin as one of the most outstanding managers Britain has produced in the past decade, but also as a cold fish. He is capable of losing his temper, but it takes a great deal of provocation.

Born in Edgware, Middlesex, Sir Colin began his working life in 1951 with the Orient Steam Navigation Company. After seven years he came ashore to begin a 21- year career in the North American car hire industry, which took him from management trainee with Hertz to chief executive of Avis, based in New York. A two-year stint with the Sears retailing group followed before Sir Colin joined British Airways in 1983.

Almost from day one, his work regime was a punishing one of 14-hour days and six-day weeks, globe-trotting from breakfast sessions to late night debriefings.

Partly for this reason, he has not had the time to hob-nob with politicians in the way that his predecessor did. 'Colin has nothing like the political antennae or judgement of John King, and he is largely untested for the role of chairman,' says a competitor.

In his new, high-profile post, he will have to add those attributes to his armoury in double quick time.