Emirates appoints UAE nationals in executive reshuffle

Dubai: Emirates has announced a number of appointments to its commercial operations team across the Middle East and Africa.

All of the appointments, effective from January 6, bring Emirati talent into key leadership positions, either being promoted from within the organisation or through portfolio rotations, the airline said in a statement on Tuesday.

The latest reshufle will see a number of employees move from one location to another, as the airline seeks to further strengthen its business.

The airline had earlier reported an 86 per cent drop in net profits for the first half of 2018. Its revenues, however, rose 10 per cent year-on-year to hit Dh48.9 billion.

“As we continue to develop our operations in the Middle East, GCC and Africa, the unique backgrounds, experience and skills of each newly appointed member of our commercial team will further strengthen our commercial and business operations and drive our strategic initiatives in a new year of growth,” said Thierry Antinori, Emirates’ executive vice president and chief commercial officer.

“Their experience will also be instrumental as we focus on executing many of our commercial initiatives to pursue revenue opportunities, improve margin performance, as well as capture new consumer segments.”

Mohammad Lootah will be taking on the role of “manager Jordan”. He joined Emirates in 2016 and has held commercial support management roles in Riyadh and Kuwait.

The airline carried 30.1 million passengers in the first half of 2018. During the year, the Dubai-based airline launched a number of additional flights, including the direct service to Edinburgh, Prague and Manchester, among others. The airline also unveiled its Airbus A380 service from Dubai to Osaka in Japan

New appointments

Tariq Al Mutawa has been appointed as “manager Kuwait”. Tariq has been with Emirates for eight years, holding roles in India, Bahrain and Qatar.

Hamad Al Ali, has been appointed to lead Emirates’ commercial activities as “manager Bahrain”. Hamad joined Emirates in 2013 as a commercial support manager and was posted in South Africa and Ethiopia. After that, he was assigned as manager Zambia where he executed and delivered the airline’s commercial activities in that market.

Omar Al Bushlaibi, will become manager Oman. He joined the airline in 2014 as part of the UAE National Commercial Management Programme (UNCMP) training in the UAE sales department, Istanbul, as well as Mumbai, before holding the role of commercial Support Manager in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Nasser Bahlooq will be manager Zimbabwe. Nasser joined the UNCMP in 2015, and was selected to manage the airline’s commercial activities in Yinchuan, China and most recently Yangon, Myanmar where he supported the route launch activities of the linked route to Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

Khalfan Al Salami, will hold the role of Manager Sudan. Khalfan joined Emirates in 2015 as part of the programme, taking on further training and development in Emirates’ station in Madrid and most recently held the role of commercial support manager Kuwait.

Marwan Al Marri will become manager Riyadh. Marwan previously held the commercial support manager position in Madina.

Fahad Bastaki, will take on the role of manager Dammam. Fahad began his career with Emirates in 2015, and has also held commercial support positions in South Africa and most recently Zimbabwe.

Saeed Khalifa Bin Sulaiman will take on the role of senior manager, Abu Dhabi and Al Ain. Saeed previously held the role of regional Mmnager East (Riyadh and Dammam) in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Omar Al Banna, will become manager Sharjah and Northern Emirates. Omar started his career with Emirates in 2006, and has previously held the roles of managing commercial activities in Ethiopia, Tunisia, Jordan, corporate sales in the UAE and most recently managing the airline’s commercial operations in in Kuwait and Iraq.