Emirates appoints Badr Abbas new SkyCargo leader

Following four months without a leader at its SkyCargo division, Emirates has finally appointed a new divisional senior vice president cargo, amid a slew of other executive appointments.

Badr Abbas (pictured) becomes the new cargo chief, following Nabil Sultan’s move to the passenger side in March.

Mr Abbas has been with Emirates for more than 24 years, most recently as SVP commercial operations (Africa), a role he has held for nearly five years. Prior to that, he held the same role, but in the Far East, and he has also specialised in commercial operations in UAE and Oman.

Emirates announced 10 appointments effective from today, and a further two for September. The carrier, which has long made an effort to promote UAE nationals, noted that the list included seven.

HH Sheikh Ahmed said: “These appointments reflect the expanded scale, breadth and ambition of our business. I’m heartened that we have been able to fill these roles with internal talent, including UAE nationals. The Emirates group will continue to invest in being an employer of choice for the best talent in the industry, to deliver world-leading products and services, and reflect Dubai’s vision to be number-one in everything we do.”

The joke decades ago at Emirates, infamously, had been that its name stood for English-Managed, Indian-Run, Arabs Take Executive Salaries. But over the past few years it has worked hard to promote and retain local talent.