XNA announces new chief operating officer

Andrew Branch has been appointed to chief operating officer of Northwest Arkansas National Airport (XNA).

He replaces Kelly Johnson, who had served as chief operating officer since 2018 and was previously airport director since 1996. Airport officials did not say whether Johnson retired.

Branch joined XNA in April 2019 as chief business development officer after working for the state in a variety of roles, including chief financial officer for the Arkansas Department of Veterans Affairs, vice president of housing at the Arkansas Development Finance Authority and director of finance with the Arkansas Department of Human Services.

“I am both honored by and grateful for the confidence executive leadership at XNA has placed in me,” said Branch in a news release. “I plan to continue to uphold XNA’s values and look forward to advancing the economic engine that is Northwest Arkansas’s airport.”

Prior to attending law school, Branch worked as an accountant, project manager and account manager with Caterpillar Global Mining. Branch has a bachelor of science in accounting from LeTourneau University in Longview Texas, an master of business administration from Texas A&M in College Station, and a law degree from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.