Dubai’s Emirates reveals management changes in the Middle East

Dubai airline Emirates revealed three management changes within its commercial and cargo operations team in the Middle East.

In the UAE, the airline has appointed Abbas A Haji as vice president Hub Operations for SkyCargo, a statement said.

Haji will be manage Emirates SkyCargo’s hub operations in Dubai at both Al Maktoum International Airport and Dubai International Airport in his new role.

He joined the Emirates Group in 1977, working for dnata Cargo and previously held the role of vice president Iran, Iraq and Central Asia, running the airline’s commercial operations activities.

The airline also confirmed the appointment of Mohamed Khoory as manager of Iran.

Khoory, who previously served as manager of Jordan and West Bank, joined Emirates in 2011 as part of the UAE national management programme for Commercial Operations.

He also held commercial support roles in India and the US and served as district manager in Dammam, Saudi Arabia.

As his replacement, Emirates has appointed Sultan Alriyami as manager of Jordan and West Bank. Also a UAE national, Alriyami joined Emirates in 2014 and has held commercial support roles in Singapore, and more recently in Iran.

All of the appointments will be effective from June 1, 2017, the statement added.

Thierry Antinori, executive vice president and COO said: “The Middle East’s market dynamics continually present us with unique challenges and opportunities. All three UAE nationals who will be taking on new roles have a deep understanding of the business and operations at Emirates, from both the passenger and cargo side.”

Emirates’ operations in the Middle East market noted a 3.6 per cent increase in revenue in 2016/2017 over the previous financial year. From Dubai, Emirates has a total of 330 passenger flights per week into 14 Middle East destinations in nine countries.

Earlier this year, Emirates said it was in the process of a “modest restructuring”, which involved moving employees into new positions with staff both promoted and demoted.

A spokeswoman said that a “very small number” of staff had been affected by the move.

Read more: Dubai’s Emirates says ‘small number’ of staff affected by ‘restructuring’