TOKYO: Japan Airlines has named two new top executives to help oversee a painful overhaul.

JAL, which is slashing more than 15,600 jobs, chose Masaru Onishi, 54, to become its president and chief operating officer, a company statement said. Onishi joined JAL in 1978 and served as the president of Japan Air Commuter, a small subsidiary that handles regional flights.

JAL tapped as executive vice president Hisao Taguchi, 54, who was in charge of operations in the southern Kyushu region.