Chris Browne to leave TUI TUI Aviation’s chief operating officer Chris Browne is to leave after more than 16 years with the company. Browne will leave in September and plans to take the rest of the year off to spend time with friends and family. But after that, she did not rule out taking another role in the industry, either full-time or in a non-executive role. Browne, who joined TUI when she began working for First Choice in 1999, has been credited with the successful re-branding of Air2000 to First Choice Airways and leading the merger of Thomsonfly and First Choice Airways to Thomson Airways in just nine months. She was also instrumental in Thomson Airways’ decision to order 13 787 Dreamliners and become the first UK airline to fly the aircraft. She recently received an honorary Doctor of Science degree for her work in the industry in recognition of her work as ‘a pioneer in the aviation travel industry’. Browne was also awarded an OBE award in the 2013 New Year’s Honour’s list, an honorary Doctor of Science for management leadership from the University of Ulster in 2011 and membership into the British Travel Industry Hall of Fame in 2014.