Qatar's Guillaume Halleux takes on Swissport CCO role

Guillaume Halleux has left Qatar Airways Cargo, as exclusively reported by The Loadstar in June – and yesterday joined Swissport as chief commercial officer.

Mr Halleux, who is widely respected in the industry, will develop Swissport’s commercial agenda in building new relationships with airlines and acquiring new businesses.

Warwick Brady, president & CEO of Swissport, said: “Our growth plan and the company’s strategic outlook as the global market leader attract the best talent in the industry. Swissport’s management team consists of a complementary group of executives with experience in ground handling and the airline industry. It allows us to understand what airlines want and meet their expectations.”

There has been much speculation about where Mr Halleux would end up, with some sources suggesting he might leave the business and start something in his home country of France. Prior to his seven-year stint at Qatar, he was general manager sales for Bollore Logistics Singapore, and also spent about a decade at Air France and SkyTeam.

Mr Halleux became a director of Freightos following Qatar Airways’ investment in the company. Despite leaving Doha last month, he continues to be a director, but that is likely to change as Qatar has the right to install its own director on the booking platform’s board. Mr Halleux is one of only three executives or directors in Freightos that do not own shares.

Swissport, meanwhile, said it wanted to be the “go-to service partner for airlines worldwide”.

“Stable customer relationships are a prerequisite, especially if a collaboration is to evolve toward an integrated hub management arrangement. Swissport’s executive team has a thorough understanding of what airlines seek, and this makes us the partner of choice for airlines that seek the stability of reliable, safe and cost-efficient operations,” it explained.