KUWAIT: United Projects for Aviation Company, a commercial real estate and facilities management company, announced that Eng. Hamad Malallah has been named as its new CEO, effective 01 January 2025.
Malallah succeeds Nadia Akil, who served as UPAC CEO from 2012 until her recent appointment as CEO of Reem Mall in Abu Dhabi, UAE. UPAC co-developed Reem Mall in partnership with Agility Global and National Real Estate Holding Company (NREC).
Prior to his appointment, Malallah was VP of Operations for UPAC. Since 2013, he led a team responsible for managing over 24,000 SQM of commercial real estate at Kuwait International Airport, including parking, maintenance, and related facilities within Terminal 1, Terminal 4, Terminal 3 (Sheikh Saad Terminal) and Discovery Mall. Prior to joining UPAC, Malallah held various senior positions with the Agility group, including as Director of the Transport Department.
Malallah’s appointment comes shortly after UPAC announced the signing of a 17-year agreement with Kuwait’s Touristic Enterprises Company (TEC) to operate Al Messilah Beach, a new, 70,000+ SQM multi-use beachfront leisure and entertainment destination.
Under the agreement, UPAC will manage and operate the facility, handling all components from leasing, facility management, and overall project operations. Al Messilah Beach was recently redeveloped by TEC and is set to become a landmark attraction and a ‘must visit’ lifestyle and community destination that enhances the tourism offering in Kuwait.
Beijing, China: Chapman Freeborn has appointed Allen Liu President of its newly expanded operations across Greater China.
Since joining Chapman Freeborn in 2012, Liu has held several roles, including Senior Cargo Manager for China and Vice President of Cargo for North Asia, during which he established new regional offices in Southern and Southwestern China.
“For more than 20 years, Chapman Freeborn has been making steady progress in the vibrant Chinese market with six offices in major cities such as Shanghai, Shenzhen, Beijing, Chengdu and Hong Kong,” said Allen Liu, President – Greater China, Chapman Freeborn. “I look forward to leading our team in China and leveraging the Group’s more than 50 years of experience to continually innovate our services and strengthen Chapman Freeborn’s competitive position in China.”
Liu will oversee all freight operations in the region as part of Chapman Freeborn’s long-term strategy to deepen its commitment to the Chinese market.
Frankfurt, Germany: Dietmar Focke, Chief Operations Officer at Lufthansa Cargo, will leave the Executive Board of Lufthansa Cargo AG on October 31, 2024 and become Managing Director at Lufthansa Industry Solutions, the service company for IT consulting and system integration within the Lufthansa Group.
The 51-year-old engineering graduate has headed the Operations division since March 1, 2022,
responsible for Global Handling Management, Flight Operations, Security and most of Lufthansa Cargo’s equity investments.
“With his extensive experience in aviation and logistics as well as the management of large business units, Dietmar Focke has continued to lead Lufthansa Cargo into the future as part of the Executive Board team and has made a significant contribution to the further development and modernization of Lufthansa Cargo,” said Dr. Michael Niggemann, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Lufthansa Cargo AG and Chief Human Resources Officer of the Lufthansa Group.
Dietmar Focke began his career in 2001 as a product engineer at Lufthansa Technik. His major milestones in recent years have included the continuation of the comprehensive LCC Evolution infrastructure program, which includes the further development and renewal of the logistics center at the home hub in Frankfurt. He was also responsible for the successful expansion of the A321 freighter fleet to four A321 freighters.
In the last 12 months, he has been instrumental in the successful development of an e-commerce product for Lufthansa Cargo. Finally, he will set the course for improved quality at Lufthansa Cargo during his remaining term of office.
Oliver von Götz has been appointed Head of Global Fulfillment Management of Lufthansa Cargo in Frankfurt since 01 September 2024.
He is responsible for global warehouse handling, the further development and management of the production system as well as customer service at the cargo airline and is the contact person for the responsible authorities.
With 13 years of experience in the aviation industry in the areas of network management, strategy and sales, Oliver von Götz can draw on a wealth of experience. Before joining Lufthansa Cargo, he was Head of Corporate Airline Strategy and Business Development Lufthansa Airlines within the Lufthansa Group.
Mumbai, India: Kale Logistics Solutions (Kale) has named Tribhuwan Negi as the company’s new Chief Technology Officer (CTO).
With nearly 25 years of experience in building large-scale SaaS platforms and leading global R&D organizations, Negi brings a wealth of expertise to Kale at a time of significant growth and innovation.
Negi’s arrival comes as Kale unveil further advancements to their UN recognized Airport Cargo Community System and Port Community System. One of his first key initiatives will be overseeing the development of intelligent AI-driven applications that further enhance Kale’s solutions in the logistics and supply chain sectors.
“Logistics and supply chain technology is seeing rapid technological advancement and Kale stands at the forefront of this transformation opportunity by leveraging cutting-edge solutions to enable global trade and commerce,” said Negi, CTO, Kale Logistics Solutions.
Kale continues to strengthen its leadership team to ensure its continued success globally.
“We believe that at Kale, we are driving the digital transformation of the logistics industry,” said Rajesh Panicker, Co-Founder and COO of Kale Logistics Solutions. “With Tribhuwan’s deep expertise, we are confident that he will accelerate our growth and further enhance our ability to deliver innovative technological solutions that revolutionize the global supply chain.”
Toulouse, France: Airbus has named Gabriel Semelas as President of Airbus in Africa and the Middle East, effective from 1st January 2025. He succeeds Mikail Houari, who has played a crucial role in expanding Airbus’ footprint in the region over the past years.
Semelas brings more than 24 years of experience in the aeronautical industry, having held key senior executive roles. He returns to Airbus from his current position as Chief Commercial and Financial Officer at Eurofighter Jagdflugzeug GmbH in Germany. Prior to that, he led the contracts team for Airbus’ Commercial Aircraft business in Africa and the Middle East.
In his new role, Semelas will be responsible for overseeing Airbus’ operations across all the company’s divisions in the Africa and Middle East region, a key area for Airbus strategic development.
Wouter Van Wersch, Executive Vice President International at Airbus, said: “Gabriel’s extensive background in the aeronautical industry, coupled with his proven leadership skills, makes him the ideal candidate to lead Airbus’ operations in Africa and the Middle East. We are confident that under his leadership, we will continue to strengthen our presence and partnerships in this strategically important region.”
Semelas said he takes pride in taking his new role saying, “I am honored to take on this responsibility at such a pivotal time for Airbus in Africa and the Middle East. I look forward to working with our talented teams and partners to drive growth and innovation in this dynamic market,” said Gabriel Semelas.
With a significant presence throughout the Middle East and Africa, Airbus employs more than 3,300 people and remains committed to delivering industry leading products and services to customers across the region.
Frankfurt, Germany: From 1 October 2024, Elodie Berthonneau will take over the position of Vice President Asia-Pacific at Lufthansa Cargo in Singapore.
She will head the sales and handling organization in one of the most important markets for Lufthansa Cargo. This includes, among others, China, Japan, South Korea, Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines and Oceania.
Berthonneau joins Lufthansa Cargo from Qatar Cargo where she was Vice President Network Planning and Strategic Partnership.
With more than 25 years of experience in the aviation industry, Berthonneau has held various management positions in sales, pricing, profit management and strategic planning at Qatar Airways and Air France KLM.
Her previous roles have included building start-ups, restructuring organizations, network redesign, major strategic partnerships and people management. Having worked in Europe, the Middle East and Asia, she also has broad international experience.
“We are happy to welcome Elodie Berthonneau as Head of Asia Pacific. The Asian region is one of our most important markets and is expected to become even more relevant in the coming years. Combining her expertise and experience within the industry and the Lufthansa Cargo brand and knowledge, she will set new accents in our Asia Pacific organization and in the dialogue with our customers,” said Anand Kulkarni, Head of Global Markets at Lufthansa Cargo.
Mumbai, India: Kale Logistics has appointed Shripad Inamdar as the company’s new Chief Financial Officer and Sanjeev Madavi as Chief Innovation Officer.
Inamdar has over 20 years of SaaS and IT expertise and will primarily drive Kale’s digitalization projects and international expansion. His first priorities will be to automate workflows to increase efficiency across Kale’s expanded operational scope and strengthen its global compliance framework.
Inamdar also brings extensive executive-level financial expertise from complex, multinational organizations. His experience ranges from consulting to IT industry as a qualified chartered accountant, managing turnovers of USD200 million and working for big fours for nearly a decade.
“Kale is taking-off in even more directions for both customers and investors across the world and I think with my diverse professional experience I am ready to play a key role in this journey,” said Inamdar.
Madavi, meanwhile, has nearly 30 years of experience in digital transformation and innovation in international supply chain and logistics industry. In his new role, he will lead Kale’s continued expansion into multimodal community platforms, aiming to enhance and develop new services that complement the company’s flagship Cargo Community Systems (CCS).
His focus will be on addressing the evolving needs of the logistics community by introducing value-added services that further streamline and synchronize CCS platforms, transforming them into more adaptable and unified sources of data.
“My passion for leveraging technology to drive innovation aligns perfectly with Kale’s digital products, which are instrumental in transforming supply chain and logistics facilitators into global integrated communities. I look forward to advancing our offerings in this dynamic industry,” said Madavi.
Vineet Malhotra, Co-Founder & Director, Kale Logistics Solutions, commented, “Sanjeev will be a tremendous asset to our leadership team. His philosophy of ‘Agility with Outcomes’ resonates with our core values at Kale as we continue to deliver solutions that are not only efficient but also future-proof and agile.”
Rajesh Panicker, COO, Kale Logistics Solutions, separately commented, “We are excited to have Inamdar join us to further our ambitious plans for this and coming years as we continue to revolutionize the global logistics industry with our innovative deep tech.”
Kale currently has a global presence across USA, Canada, Colombia, Netherlands, Republic of Congo, Kenya, UAE, India, Malaysia, and Japan.
Paris, France: Launched in February 2023, CargoAi’s CargoWALLET has quickly gained traction and today facilitates cargo payments in over 47 currencies. The freight industry’s fastest growing digital enabler has now appointed global payment expert, Olivier Veyrac as its Senior Vice President for CargoWALLET.
Over the last 18 months, CargoWALLET has been adopted by 5,000+ Airlines, Freight Forwarders, GHAs and logistic service providers. With CargoWallet, CargoAi freight professionals can now pay from 150 countries and in over 47 currencies using local payment methods.
The wallet is available to all logistics companies. CargoWALLET is proving particularly attractive to freight forwarders because of its instant-cross-border payment capability. With the wallet, airlines can accept instant payments from all their customers, rather than inconvenient cash payments, long settlement times or having to rely on bank guaranties before accepting a booking.
The integration of CargoWALLET directly with freight forwarders Transport Management System (TMS) is an additional use case permitting faster payment and reconciliation via multiple payment methods.
Matt Petot, CEO of CargoAi, commented: “CargoWALLET has reached critical adoption in its early version. I am delighted that Olivier Veyrac has joined us as Senior Vice President of CargoWALLET to take it to the next level. He has extensive financial technology and technology integration experience, working with companies across the world. Furthermore, his experience scaling global BtoB payments solutions and commercial partnerships will prove invaluable to the success of CargoAi fintech venture.”
Veyrac described CargoWallet as having the broadest reach in the industry, enabling more than 200 payment methods in 150 countries with utmost security and confidentiality requirements, but he says, “There is still room for improvement. More new features, more partners, and more countries are my goals for the coming months.”
Cross-border payments via CargoWALLET, have dropped processing times from days to seconds, and reduced bank fees. It also opened up the possibility for some import customers in some part of the world to settle their accounts electronically for the first time.
Miami, Florida: The International Air Cargo Association (TIACA) has appointed Mahendra Pokhriyal as its Regional Representative – India.
Mahendra’s appointment supports the mandate from TIACA’s Board of Directors and its members to have and maintain a regional presence in key areas across the globe. In his role, he will enhance member relations within India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka by networking and building relationships with current and prospective members, regional bodies and the respective government agencies.
Mahendra is also tasked with promoting and implementing TIACA policies and positions within the region.
“We are excited to welcome Mahendra Pokhriyal to the TIACA Team. Mahendra has an extensive resume that is a perfect fit for the needs of the association and its membership. We look forward to seeing how he can connect us further with the Indian community,” said Steven Polmans, TIACA Chair.
Mahendra has extensive experience covering more than 30 years of leadership positions within Jetair – GSA Gulf Air, Jet Airways, Emirates and Shree Shakti Air Cargo Pvt Ltd. Mahendra’s background includes knowledge in air cargo sales and marketing, airport cargo operations, business development, ground handling and freight forwarding.
“I am honored to be part of TIACA and would be happy to contribute to further strengthening its presence in the Indian sub-continent. My primary objective is to support TIACA’s initiatives and fortify our industry’s network in this region. Together, we can enhance the efficiency, sustainability, and growth of the air cargo industry in the region. I look forward to working with all of you and making significant strides in our shared mission,” said Mahendra.
TIACA Director General Glyn Hughes commented: “India has experienced amazing growth in recent years as it seeks to achieve the government’s economic objective of moving 10 m tonnes of cargo as part of a USD 5 trillion-dollar economy. We are proud to support the air cargo industry across the region and this appointment is a strong commitment towards that objective.”
Jeddah, Saudi Arabia: Saudia, the national flag carrier of Saudi Arabia, has announced the appointment of two members of its senior leadership team to the International Air Transport Association (IATA)’s influential advisory councils.
Faisal Sabbagh, Executive Vice President of Finance and Services at Saudia Group, has been appointed to the Industry Financial Advisory Council, while Abdulgader Attiah, Chief Data and Technology Officer at Saudia Group, has been appointed to join the Digital Transformation Advisory Council.
The advisory councils focus on identifying innovative solutions to advance the aviation sector and provide recommendations for qualitative initiatives in key areas including digital transformation, security, aviation safety, and sustainability.
Engr. Ibrahim Al-Omar, Director General of Saudia Group, serves as an elected member of IATA’s Board of Governors, the highest legislative body within the organization. In addition, he holds positions in both the Chair Committee and the Nominating Committee, playing a crucial role in overseeing and guiding IATA’s strategic direction.
With these new appointments, Saudia’s representation in IATA’s advisory councils has now reached six members across six of the association’s nine councils. Previously, Captain Mohammed Dahduli, Vice President of Safety, Aviation Security and Quality at Saudia, was appointed to the Security Advisory Council; Marwan Niazi, Vice President Commercial Saudia Air Cargo Company, joined the Cargo Advisory Council; Mohammed Alsaied, General Manager of Strategies and Legal Compliance, became a member of the Legal Advisory Council; and Dr. Saleh Bukhari, General Manager of Sales and Distribution Strategies, was appointed to the Distribution Advisory Council.
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