Sri Lanka Aviation

When Qatar Airways acquired its first A 380 superjumbo, its Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker (pronounced Bak’r) saw to it that the aircraft did a few low flying sorties for those in Abu Dhabi to see.

Not to be outdone, when Abu Dhabi’s national carrier Etihad received its first A 380, it followed suit with a similar show. Al Baker arrived in Colombo on Thursday on a scheduled Qatar Airways flight. As a two-day seminar on investment promotion got under way, he held talks with Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe on investment opportunities in Sri Lanka.

At the Bandaranaike International Airport, after he was greeted, he asked one of those present why they had a US-built Chrysler waiting for him. He said he would have preferred to travel in a German BMW or a Mercedes Benz.

Oman-born Baker, a reputed businessman, also chairs a number of other companies and holds a private pilot’s licence. Though a few privy to the talks denied any formal talks on Mr. Baker’s most successful expertise — that of running an airline — and declined comment, one source whispers that the subject (of running an airline) did figure informally.

The man who does not mince his words, this source said, prescribed some bitter medicine if the national carrier, which is fast bleeding the national coffers, was to be revived. It seems the locals are finding such medicine difficult to swallow.

I have loads to tell about him but most are scandalous and kind of hideous so best left out of a public forum. Out of the ME3 carriers he is the least respected. Some of his strategies and the way he goes on with the business he can get away only cause he is where he is. Comes nowhere close to Sir Tim Clark or James Hogan. Some of the ecomments he has made at IATA conferences could only be given the response "What the hell". Something QR boasted about in the past was our B777 Y class will be 3-3-3 unlike EY and EK who have Y class as 3-4-3 as we believe in passenger comfort. But as of now QR is slowly sneaking in 3-4-3 into both their Medium and Long Haul 777s and in a couple of weeks all will be 3-4-3. QR also boasted that we will provide champagne to our Y class customers but slowly taken this off. Some of the amenities pulled out of premium class. Not directly linked to CEO another mess was the new Hamad International Airlines airport in DOH which was supposed to be opened on 12-12-12, but was far from ready. With all the accusations going towards ME3 carriers on govt support and subsidies, if there is any such I believe QR is on the top of the list as I seriously question on how they manage their yeilds and profits based on the fares they publish. Call it a promo fare but these fares are good to believe. Example: I have just bought a CMB-FCO-CMB return Business ticket for March 2016 for just LKR 130,000. (Well they say it is a promotion fare, but really!!!!????). I will leave it to learnt friends on this group to do a price comparison and see. By the way these comments are no way directed towards any of the friends/members in this group as I believe it is what you guys do that makes the airline great. Sometime the people at the pinnacle/helm suck but those at the lower end keep the wheels turning. (Same can be said to UL).