Emirates Airline has appointed Hamad Obaidalla, a 16-year veteran with the airline, to the newly-created position of Divisional Senior Vice President - Network Operations. The appointment, effective immediately, was approved by HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive, Emirates Airline and Group.

Sheikh Ahmed said: “Carefully planned, clockwork operations are the backbone of Emirates’ successful hub. It is like conducting a large orchestra to ensure all our ground and flight operations around the network perform in harmony. As Emirates continues to expand, this will become increasingly complex but we are confident that Hamad is up to the challenge and the right man for the job.”

As Divisional Senior Vice President - Network Operations, Mr Obaidalla will oversee a team of highly-skilled network managers and controllers in the co-ordination of Emirates’ aircraft and crew.

Mr Obaidalla said: “I’ve always been interested in airlines, including the technical side of the business. Aviation is a very broad discipline and no matter how long you’re in it you still learn new things everyday. Working for Emirates is like a dream come true - I work with a talented team of professionals, and the fast-growing business brings exciting challenges and new learning opportunities each day.
“With Emirates’ sales and commercial department, I have been serving passengers in the frontline, and now in operations, I look forward to continue providing excellent service to our customers from behind the scenes. I would like to thank the company for giving me this opportunity, and I look forward to making a strong contribution.”

Network operations work closely with engineering, flight and airport operations to ensure the smooth rostering of aircraft and crew, aircraft movements and rotations. It also works with Reservations to optimize the usage of aircraft and crew, and minimise inconvenience to passengers during flight disruptions.

Joining Emirates in 1991 as a Management Trainee, Hamad Obaidalla quickly learned the ropes of the airline industry and honed his experience from overseas postings including managing the commercial operations of various Emirates offices in East Africa and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He was made General Manager - GCC, Yemen & Iran in 2000; and Senior Vice President Commercial Operations - Gulf, Middle East and Iran in 2004.

In his new role, Mr Obaidalla will report to Adel Al Redha, Executive Vice President - Engineering and Operations. During his career in the airline industry, Mr Obaidalla also held the posts of Chairman of the Board of Airline Representatives (BAR) in Dubai, and Chairman of the Agency Investigation Panel (AIP) for the Gulf.

Hamad Obaidalla graduated from the WentWorth Institute of Technology, Boston, M.A, in the United States with a Bachelor’s degree in Electronics Engineering.-ends
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