World Routes 2017

Barcelona, Catalonia
• 23 – 26 September 2017

World Routes 2017

The event presents an unrivalled platform for route development professionals to discuss, develop and plan network strategy. Providing unique cost and time saving benefits...

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Programme Speakers

Willie Walsh

CEO, IAG

Willie Walsh became chief executive of International Airlines Group (IAG) in January 2011, joining from British Airways where he was chief executive from October 2005.

 IAG is the parent company of Aer Lingus, British Airways, Iberia and Vueling. It is one of the world’s largest airline groups with 547 aircraft flying to 268 destinations and carrying more than 100 million passengers each year.

 Previous to his role at British Airways, Willie was chief executive of Aer Lingus from October 2001. He joined the airline in 1979 as a cadet pilot and became a captain in 1990 before moving into management roles.

 Originally from Dublin, Willie is also chairman of the Ireland’s National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA).

Participating Talks and Sessions

Skúli Mogensen

CEO & Founder, WOW Air

Skúli Mogensen is the founder, CEO and sole owner of WOW air. Prior to founding WOW air Skúli spent 20 years as an entrepreneur and investor, primarily in the Technology, Media and Telecom Industry in North America and Europe. Skúli was awarded The Businessman of the Year Award in Iceland in 2011 and 2016.

Skúli Mogensen co-founded and was CEO of OZ Communications, a mobile software company, while still studying philosophy at the University of Iceland. Skúli grew OZ to over 200 employees and sold over 100 million copies of its messaging software to all the major handset manufactures and mobile operators before selling OZ to Nokia in 2008.

In parallel Skúli also co-founded Islandssimi, which later became Vodafone Iceland and is the second largest mobile operator in Iceland and CAOZ, the largest animation studio in Iceland which created the first full featured 3D animated film in Iceland, Thor - The Legends of Valhalla. He is also the largest investor and board member in Carbon Recycling International which is gaining global recognition for its pioneering work in the green energy field. CRI built the first plant in the world which converts CO2 emissions into Methanol, thus converting waste into energy. In 2010 Skúli led a group of investors to resurrect MP Bank after the total collapse of the Banking sector in Iceland.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Giorgio Callegari

Deputy CEO, Aeroflot

Graduated from Turin Polytechnic University (Turin, Italy) with a degree in mining.

Since 1986 till December 1989 worked as Sales Manager, was a member of the BoD and the executive committee in “Malan Viaggi” air company.

Since 1990 till 2011 worked in “Alitalia” air company, where he rose from Sales Manager, Vice President for Sales, Vice President for Business Development, Vice President for Alliances, Business Development and Foreign Relations to Executive Vice President for Alliances and Strategies.

Since 2011 has been working for JSC “Aeroflot”.  

Participating Talks and Sessions

Tewolde Gebremariam

CEO, Ethiopian Airlines

Tewolde GebreMariam joined Ethiopian Airlines in 1985 as Transportation Agent at Addis Ababa Airport. He progressed through the ladder to Manager Cargo Traffic Handling. He was appointed as Regional Director for India and South East Asia based in Bombay. He was transferred to Jeddah as Area Manager for Saudi Arabia. When Ethiopian Airlines commenced direct services to the USA, he was appointed as Area Sales Manager for North East USA and Canada based in New York. In October 2000 he was appointed as Regional Director for the Americas.

On August 16, 2004 he was appointed as Executive Officer marketing & Sales to head the Marketing and Sales Operations of Ethiopian Airlines. On July 1, 2006 he was appointed as Chief Operating Officer of Ethiopian Airlines to head all the operating divisions of the airline, Commercial, Flight Operations, Customer Services and Maintenance and Engineering. Since January 1, 2011, he has been serving as CEO of Ethiopian Airlines.

He earned his B.A. degree in Economics from Addis Ababa University in Ethiopia and his Masters of Business Administrations Degree from the Open University in the United Kingdom. Mr. GebreMariam is married and a father of four children and currently residing in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Participating Talks and Sessions

John R. Byerly

Consultant, John Byerly

John Byerly advises clients on the full range of international aviation issues, including negotiations, economic and environmental regulation, aviation safety and security, government relations, and strategic planning. John graduated with highest honors from the University of North Carolina, studied European and German law on a Fulbright Scholarship in Berlin, and received his JD from Yale in 1979.  Upon graduation, he joined the State Department, serving thirty-one years in positions addressing American foreign policy, national security, and international economic relations. For almost a decade (2001-2010), John was the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State responsible for market-opening air transport agreements with over 70 countries and led U.S. delegations in negotiations that secured Open Skies with Germany, France, the European Union, and Japan. He was active in the economic, legal, and environmental work of ICAO and helped implement the U.S. response to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Pere Suau-Sanchez

Course Director and Senior Lecturer, Cranfield University

Dr Pere Suau-Sanchez is Senior Lecturer in Air Transport Management and Course Director of the MSc in Airport Planning and Management at Cranfield University. He is an expert in airline networks, airport connectivity and strategic management. He has published more than 20 articles in peer-reviewed journals and has led aviation consultancy projects for a diverse range of clients (airlines, airports and governments). He is also a regular contributor to international media and press, including CNN, Forbes, BBC and La Vanguardia.

Mayur Patel

Regional Sales Director – JAPAC, OAG

Mayur (Mac) Patel is the Regional Director, JAPAC, at OAG, the leading global provider of digital flight information. Based in Singapore, he is responsible for business development and leading the sales organisation in the region.

Prior to joining OAG, Mac was Head of Regional Sales, ASPAC, Middle East and North Africa at Amadeus where he was responsible for their Travel Intelligence business. He spent over seven years at IATA, in a variety of roles focussed on aviation data solutions and services.

He holds a Bachelor of Business (tourism management major) from the University of Technology, Sydney.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Mark Clarkson

EVP Product Development, OAG

Mark is responsible for leading OAG’s flagship Schedules and Analytics portfolios.

Prior to this, Mark spent three years leading OAG’s commercial development in Asia Pacific, with the core focus to develop and deliver revenue growth and lead the expansion of business in the ASPAC region.

In his previous role at OAG as Commercial Director, Mark was responsible for all commercial activities including customer relationship management, new product development and strategic partnerships.

Prior to joining OAG in 2012, Mark spent five years as Vice President at consultancy firm Airport Strategy & Marketing (ASM), where he was responsible for delivering client projects including new route development and network strategies. Mark worked with airports and tourism authorities in the Caribbean, Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia to implement successful strategies in building sustainable air services. Notable highlights were delivering the first LCC service to St Lucia with JetBlue and a new direct Asian service for London Gatwick Airport for Vietnam Airlines.

Before ASM, Mark spent six years in the airport and aviation division of the Peel Airports Group, where he was responsible for commercial and marketing functions including route development and airline relations.

Participating Talks and Sessions

David Appleby

Director - Latin America and the Caribbean, Routes

David joined Routes in 2007 and his remit was later expanded to include ASM’s business in Latin American and the Caribbean. He previously worked at US Airways as a group sales representative and later as an analyst specialising in the Madrid market. David is also very interested in Latin American’s history, economics and politics.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Mike Benjamin

COO, OAG

Mike joined OAG as COO via the acquisition of FlightView in January 2015. Under Mike's 8 years of leadership at FlightView the company made strides in revenue, market share and industry standing. Mike has 30+ years experience building products, markets and companies in a variety of fields

As CEO at OpenRatings he used predictive analytics to help manufacturers, primarily in the aerospace and automotive sectors, to manage the risk in their extended supply chain. Previously, Mike led the customer implementation group at Eigner (later acquired by Agile) installing enterprise PLM systems. 

Mike holds both Bachelor and Master of Science degrees from MIT where he was part of the Artificial Intelligence Lab. Mike is based in the U.S., at OAG’s Boston, MA Office.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Michael Targett

Senior Director of Data, Flightglobal

Michael Targett is a Senior Director at FlightGlobal with responsibilities for data operations, analytics, and developing new opportunities for the market.

Michael has been with FlightGlobal since 2007, initially working as Editor of Flightglobal.com, during which time the website won the AOP Business Website of the Year 2010. From there he moved into new product development helping lead FlightGlobal’s launch of its Flight Dashboard product.

In 2012 he became Director of Data, taking on responsibilities for building and managing market-leading fleet and air finance data sets. This expanded to include the airline schedule data with FlightGlobal acquisition of Innovata in 2014.

Participating Talks and Sessions

John Kirby

Vice President, Capacity

John Kirby is the Vice President of Capacity Planning at Alaska Air Group. In this role he leads long-term network strategy, route & frequency planning, and schedule planning & distribution for both Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air. Prior to joining Alaska in January of 2015, Kirby worked at Southwest Airlines in multiple leadership roles including senior director, domestic & international planning, and senior director, international business management. In May 2012 he received the President’s Award from CEO Gary Kelly for leading the creation of the carrier’s international business unit. Before joining Southwest Airlines, Kirby led the network planning group at AirTran Airways from December 1999 until May 2011. Prior to joining AirTran, Kirby held management positions in network planning at US Airways, and Northwest Airlines. He began his aviation career in 1983 with People Express Airlines. An alumnus of Montclair State University, he lives on Mercer Island, WA with his wife Libby, daughter Kayla and son Mitchell.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Dave Williams

Director of Leasing., ACMI24

As Director of Leasing at ACMI 24 / ACC Aviation Dave is responsible managing all ACMI wet and damp lease contracts. ACC Aviation is one of Europe’s most respected Aviation Groups supporting airlines and clients around the world in all aspects of aircraft chartering, flight management leasing and marketing. ACMI 24 is the Inter-Airline Leasing division which provides 24 hour support services to hundreds of international airlines every year. Its experience of the ACMI leasing market is extensive and represents the foundations of the business. 

Participating Talks and Sessions

Hugh Aitken

Senior Director of Strategic Partnerships, Skyscanner

Hugh is Senior Director of business development and commercial operations for Skyscanner. Hugh leads the commercial team, spanning EMEA, the Americas and Asia Pacific, responsible for forging strategic relationships with partners across the travel industry and beyond.

Prior to joining Skyscanner, Hugh spent 4 years at the European low cost airline, EasyJet, where he looked after the commercial performance and market strategy for the airline across London, Scotland, the North East of England, as well as the Middle East and Iceland. Prior to that role, Hugh spent thirteen years at UK airport operator, BAA, where he held a number of senior commercial and business development roles.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Imed Ben Abdallah

Head of Airline Marketing – Middle East & Africa, Bombardier Commercial Aircraft

Imed Ben Abdallah has over 20 years Airline experience across North America and Middle East. From 2014, Imed occupied the role of Head of Airline Marketing – Middle East and Africa based in Dubai for Bombardier. Prior to that, Imed worked at Etihad Airways as Head of Network Planning for 7 years. Also he occupied multiple roles in Sabre Airlines Solution, Delta Technology (Delta Airlines) and Gulf Air. His credentials include a Ph.D. in Industrial Engineering and Operations Research from Ecole Centrale Paris in France.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Charles Breer

Managing Director, Alliances

Charles Breer is Managing Director Alliances, responsible for airline alliance partner strategy and setting the strategic direction for commercial cooperation with airline partners.

Charles joined Alaska Airlines in 2015, having previously served as Managing Director, Alliances & Partnerships for US Airways and American Airlines, with responsibility for partners in North America, Europe, Asia & the Middle East.  Charles was also responsible for US Airways’ membership in the Star Alliance and oversaw the transition of US Airways from Star to the oneworld alliance as part of the merger with American Airlines.

Prior to US Airways, Charles worked for Northwest Airlines (later Delta Air Lines) for 17 years, where he held several director roles, including alliance strategy and development, alliance relationship management and product development/marketing research.

Charles is a graduate of Pitzer College in Claremont, CA, with a degree in Asian Studies.  He also earned a Master of Business Administration from the University of Michigan.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Raj Andrade

Vice President – Business Development, Marketing & Strategy, Bangalore International Airport Limited

As Vice President, Business Development, Marketing & Strategy, Raj is responsible for the development of the airline network - passenger and cargo business, aviation services and the general aeronautical business strategy & development for the airport. Raj also heads the brand and marketing functions of the airport.

 With over 30 years of experience in aviation management & leadership, Raj brings deep knowledge of the industry with a focus on Global Alliance Management & Development, Joint-Business Strategy, Client Relationship Management, Customer Satisfaction and Profitability and Sales & Marketing. In his previous assignments in the Airline Industry, Raj has worked as a key start up member of the “Star Alliance” and was subsequently also appointed to the “oneworld Alliance Management Team”. Raj joined BIAL in November 2013 and has previously worked with Trans World Airlines (TWA), United Airlines and Kingfisher Airlines and was based in the Middle East, the UK, the US and India – with oversight and responsibility for Global Alliance Management, Joint-Business Strategy, Client Relationship Management, Project Management and Leadership Development.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Edgardo Badiali

CEO, Libyan Wings

Edgardo Badiali is an experienced airline executive who has worked in various functions, positions and countries around the world, in both Low Cost as well as legacy carriers. Before joining Libyan Wings as its CEO, he was involved as CEO in various start-up projects as well as having several middle and top management positions in other carriers in Switzerland, Italy, India and Senegal

Participating Talks and Sessions

Tim Harris

CEO of Wesgro and Leader of Cape Town Air Access Programme

Tim Harris is the CEO of Wesgro, the Tourism, Trade and Investment Promotion Agency for Cape Town and the Western Cape.

Tim previously served as Member of Parliament and Shadow Minister of Finance for the Democratic Alliance (DA).

He holds a BA in English Literature and a Masters in Economics from the University of Cape Town.

Tim currently sits on the board of the Cape Town International Convention Centre and the Cape Town Film Studios.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Gonzalo Bonifaz

Senior VP Business Development, Aeropuertos del Perú

Responsible for leading business development for commercial & marketing divisions of Aeropuertos del Peru, a public-private concession of 12 airports in Peru with over 10 million annual users, to attract commercial business, develop air routes, R&D to enhance traveler experience, as well as ATL & BTL activities , VIP lounges, aeronautical and cargo facilities. Responsibilities encompass real estate development of all areas part of our concession.

International Business Executive with broad experience responsible for aviation business development, negotiating contracts, managing sales and operations, over 25 year of multicultural business development experience. Excels at partnering with all core business and stakeholders to significantly increase the company’s foot print, expand market share, and generate sustainable revenue.

 Mr. Bonifaz has 35 years of experience in the aviation Industry and has been responsible for the aviation's network-wide operational and airports services performance encompassing business development, ramp & cargo operations, passenger handling and Oil & Gas airports operations.

Held various senior positions at airport services companies, airlines operation departments, executive aviation and in a technology IT corporation. He started his career in corporate aviation as a commercial Pilot captain FAR 91 and FAR 135 operations, continuing to mayor (FAR 121) as Airline Transport Pilot (ATP), Operations Manager and Chief Pilot.

Mr. Bonifaz has held the position of Director of International Sales at US Technology Corporation based in California, responsible to develop, manage and expand the distributor channel division in UK. LATAM, EMEA, AUSTRALASIA, MEXICO and BRAZIL.

He implemented the first FBO service to support general aviation at the main airport in Lima, Peru, bringing presence to the country, and representing corporations as JEPPESEN data plan, SKYPLAN from Canada, BASEOPS from US, Taxi Lider from Brazil, among other important companies.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Luke Bilton

Director of Digital & Content, UBM

Luke Bilton is Director of Digital & Content at UBM plc, one of the world's largest event organisers, including travel media such as Routes Online and Seatrade.

Luke has worked in B2C and B2B publishing roles for companies such as Time Inc, Future Publishing, speaks at marketing events and is a fellow of Insitute of Data and Marketing (IDM), advising on business-to-business digital marketing.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Jean-Claude Delen

Treasurer, FIATA

RESUME
50 Years of experience in Transport and Logistics with AEI, DANZAS/AEI & DHL Global Forwarding

SKILLS & MANAGEMENT ABILITIES
Air Freight - Ocean Freight - Road Freight operations
People management: from warehouse till executive population.
SEVERAL RECOGNITION AWARDS
Personality of the year by Brussels Airport Company
Made Rider of the Belgium Crown

PROFILE
 Self-made man, easy approachable in all circumstances by all level of employees.
 Hard worker, entrepreneurial, not easily deterred by obstacles and adversity, prioritizing the “Can do” versus it’s not going to work.
 Taking advantage of every opportunity to grow business and return on investment.
 Very good communications skills and diplomacy.
 Team builder, management of staff based on recognition and bonus scheme for achievement.
 Decision maker and problem solving attitude,
 Quality driven management involving the team in quality, environment and social aspect to reach highest level of standards.
 Costs reduction concept based on the most accepted tools such as six Sigma methodologies. I can take a helicopter view and as well as apply macro or micro management.
 Thanks to this wide professional spectrum and intensive travel all around the world, in different continents and cultures, I have acquired a broad multicultural experience

WORK EXPERIENCE – KEY ACHIEVEMENTS
Career started in 1965 with Air Express International Inc, a worldwide forwarding company with head office in Darien Connecticut.
From 1965 till 1974 Employee, Supervisor, Operation Manager.
During this period the company expended from 8 to 75 Employees.
From 1974 till 1985, Regional Manager
My role was to develop the agency network in Middle-East and Africa
During this period I travelled extensively in both region up to 120 working days per year.
One special assignment has been to help Ethiopian Airlines to set up and develop their Cargo activities.
Most of the agents I did put in place are now part of the new group DHL Global Forwarding.
From 1985 till 1999 Managing Director Belgium – Luxemburg
In the meantime the company had grown to over 400 employees and became number one on the Belgian IATA league.
Until February 2000 in addition to the Belgian and Luxemburg management responsibilities I continued to manage our operation in Portugal, Angola and north and central Africa as a region.
With the acquisition of AEI in February 2000 by the Deutsche Post, I managed the integration of the company into the Danzas Group.
All these above position always with the respect and the focus on people and customers.


OTHER
 As a recognized top forwarder and logistics individual I am holding various positions in a wide range of National, European and International industry organizations
Just to list a few:
BAFI Belgian Air Freight Institute President
CEB – Confederation of the Belgium Forwarders President
Clecat – European Association for forwarding Past President
FIATA – International Federation of Freight Forwarders Past President/Treasurer

Participating Talks and Sessions

Sanjay Jayanth

Head of Business Development, Asia, ASM

Sanjay Jayanth is the Head of Business Development, Asia for Routes and ASM, part of the transport and technology division of UBM. Sanjay leads the Sales and Business development, Routes and ASM in Asia, developing and growing the portfolio across the Asia-Pacific region. Sanjay has 17 years of world-wide experience in the aviation industry in marketing strategy, competitive analysis, operations, branding and product development with KLM, British Airways, Delta Air Lines, Northwest Airlines and most recently GMR Group. He has held key positions including Airline Marketing and Route Development for Delhi International Airport as well as positions at GMR Male International Airport in the Maldives and GMR Megawide Cebu Airport Corporation in the Philippines.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Andrea Lusso

Director of Planning, jetBlue Airways

As a member of the Network Planning team, Andrea leads the network strategy of JetBlue, working closely with key organizational groups such as Operations, Finance, and Product Development. Andrea played a key role in the shaping of JetBlue’s latest large initiatives, such as the growth programs in Boston and Fort Lauderdale, and the development of the Mint product and network.

Andrea joined JetBlue in 2012 in the Marketing group, but quickly found his calling in the Network team, where he first spent time building the foundation of route forecasting and capacity planning, before shifting his focus onto long-term strategy and growing to oversee the broader Route Planning team.

Prior to joining JetBlue, Andrea worked in Sales & Marketing at Dassault Falcon Jet, and in Flight Operations at Spirit Airlines. Andrea holds a Bachelor of Science in Professional Aeronautics from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University as well as an MBA from New York University - Stern School of Business. Andrea holds a commercial pilot certificate, with multi-engine and instrument rating, and is a certified flight instructor.

Andrea and his wife live in Brooklyn, New York where they spend their free time outdoors and travelling the world.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Jaume Adrover

Barcelona Air Cargo Coordinator, BCL Association, and Director General of GPA

Responsible for the coordination of the Barcelona air cargo community within BCL association, a committee made up of representatives of the whole supply chain. Director General of GPA, an air transport consultancy company specialized on route, cargo and airport development. Previous to these roles spend his professional career in the airline business with various Director an VP roles both in strategic commercial  planning and inflight services.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Jordi Candela

Executive Director, Aeroports de Catalunya

Master of Science in Transport Engineering, Degree in Management & Business Administration and Degree in Law.

Previous professional experience at Ifercat (regional railway operator of Catalonia), Abertis Infraestructuras, and Everis consulting. In the airport sector, he was involved in the acquisition and management of the airport group TBIplc by Abertis, the development of Abertis Airports, as well as many airport tender processes.

Additionally, he collaborates as a teacher in various masters and postgraduates in infrastructure management and is the author of several articles and studies in aviation.

Director of Airports of Catalonia since 2010, having worked in the company since 2008

Participating Talks and Sessions

Kyriakos Anastassiadis

CEO, Celestyal Cruises & Chair, CLIA Europe

Kyriakos (Kerry) Anastassiadis is the CEO of Celestyal Cruises and the current Chairman of CLIA (Cruise Lines International Association) Europe. Prior to taking the helm at Celestyal Cruises, Kerry distinguished himself as General Manager, CEO and President at renowned corporations such as The Coca-Cola Company, Procter & Gamble, Polaroid and Aujan Industries. Mr. Anastassiadis's mother tongues are Greek and English, and he is also fluent in French, Italian and Portuguese. Born in the Democratic Republic of Congo and raised in Southern Africa, Kerry studied Commerce at the University of Witwatersrand and obtained his postgraduate title in Market Research and Advertising.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Marie Norman

Head of Products and Concepts, Aviation Business

Challenging the passenger journey by innovative and effective solutions Marie Norman is leading the Product Development team within Aviation Business at Swedavia Airports. With a Bachelor Degree in Multimedia: Education-Technology from the University in Stockholm and a broad knowledge in the Airline Industry Marie is well prepared to focus on the customers view to create ideas for the digital game of the future.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Rikke Munk Christensen

Vice President Traffic Planning, Finnair

Rikke has +10 years' experience in route development in aviation. She started her aviation career in Denmark, first for Sterling Airlines, LCC, later on in Cimber Sterling, regional carrier to SAS. Five years ago she relocated from Copenhagen to Helsinki and has worked for Finnair with the responsibility of developing the route network, traffic program and connections in Helsinki hub. Finnair is offering the fastest and most convenient gateway between Europe and Asia, via Helsinki, serving 17 Asian gateways, over 70 destinations in Europe and three gateways in the US. We operate one of the youngest fleet and was launching European carrier for the new Airbus A350XWB. Finnair is a member of the Oneworld alliance and has joint venture with American Airlines, British Airways and Iberia on the North Atlantic, and with Japan Airlines and British Airways on Europe-Japan routes. As a forerunner in quality and punctuality, Finnair is able to offer the shortest and fastest connections between Europe and Asia due to the geographical location of Helsinki.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Daniel Ketchibachian

CEO, EZE Airport

Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Mr. Daniel Marcos Ketchibachian is a Travel Retail Expert. He has a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration awarded by the University of Buenos Aires, and obtained an MBA degree in 2012.

His career began in 2000, as a Commercial Key Account Manager in Argentina Airports. His main duty consisted of sales and administration of commercial areas at the 33 Argentinian airports.

In 2002 he worked as a Booking Manager and Marketing at LAPA airlines, in charge of managing the booking system and creating strategic alliances (travel agencies, transport companies, service companies, etc.).

During the first half of 2003, he took over as CEO Duty Free Armenia, starting a Duty Free operation from scratch at the airport in Yerevan. Soon after that, he was named CEO Duty Paid Argentina, where he contributed to the opening of 6 branches at airports of Cordoba, Bariloche and Mendoza. He also renewed the image and layout of 1600m2 in Aeroparque incorporating national and international premium brands, generating confidence for their onset and stability.

From 2009 to 2011 he worked in the company IOSC as Commercial Manager in Montevideo. His main duties were, among others, the operations for Duty Free Shops in Argentina, Uruguay, Ecuador and Armenia.

In 2011, he participated in the Consortium Inframerica that won the first airport bid process of Brazil: the Natal Airport located in the North of Brazil. Six months later, the same consortium won the concession of Brasilia Airport, the third major airport in Brazil. After that, Daniel was Chief Commercial Officer and then President of Inframerica in Brasil.

In July of 2017 Daniel was appointed CEO of Ezeiza International Airport in AA2000.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Max Kingsley-Jones

Executive Director Content, Flightglobal

Max Kingsley-Jones has been editor of industry monthly magazine Flight Airline Business since December 2010. He previously spent 14 years with Flight International magazine, ultimately serving as Deputy Editor. Prior to joining Flight, Max spent 10 years working in various roles at UK aviation consultancy Airclaims, which is now Ascend and a division of FlightGlobal. The move to Airline Business followed a short spell with Aviation Week magazine as London bureau chief during 2010.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Raphael Kuuchi

VP for Africa, IATA

Raphael Kuuchi is the IATA Vice President for Africa. He has many years’ experience in air transport management, operations and consulting. After working with an airline for 13 years, he joined the Nairobi-based African Airlines Association (AFRAA) in 2005, as Commercial Director and  later  as  Director  Commercial,  Corporate  and  Industry  Affairs. In  this  capacity,  Mr.  Kuuchi  initiated  and oversaw  many  projects  in  airlines  business  development,  commercial  operations,  IT  and  communication,  liberalization/market access, aero-political/regulatory affairs and training across Africa. Now as Vice President for Africa, Mr. Kuuchi is leading the IATA Africa team in providing support to the growth and development of aviation  and  working  with  stakeholders to  ensure  safe,  reliable,  competitive  and  environmentally  sustainable  aviation  business  in Africa. Top  on  his  priority  list  are  issues  of  safety  and  security,  liberalization,  reducing  the  high  cost  of  operations, regulatory harmonization, capacity building and the environment. Mr. Kuuchi holds an MBA from Henley Management College, UK and a B.Sc. degree in Business Administration. He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (FCILT) UK.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Richard Bodin

former Chief Commercial Officer, Fastjet plc

Richard has spent his professional life in travel and tourism spanning over 30 years. After 10 years with the UK tour operator First Choice, he completed his MBA at a top 10 British business school. He then joined easyJet in its early years assisting in its growth from a pre AOC, wet lease operator to one that had over 35 B737’s flying an extensive route map across Europe. After easyJet, Richard assisted in the launch of Jet2.com in the UK, conceived and launched a brand new UK Tour Operator called Jet2holidays, and carried out a turnaround project for the Virgin Travel Group. 

His most recent role was CCO at Fastjet. As one of the founding Directors Richards broad role encompassed Sales, Marketing, Distribution, Product, Yield management, Network Development and Ancillary Revenue. He also sat on the PLC Board.

Fastjet is an award winning low cost carrier based in East Africa and is well on its way to achieving its goal to democratise air travel in Africa.  

Participating Talks and Sessions

Francisco Rizzuto

Cargo Specialist Manager for Europe, IATA

 Francisco (47) is an Economic Analyst specialized in International Trade with 25 years of experience in International Cargo Transportation. He also holds a Diploma on Strategic Leadership from IMD Business School, Lausanne.

His main responsibilities include driving and leading IATA’s Cargo Agenda in Europe advocating towards the Air Cargo Industry Transformation. Francisco is also specialized in Freight Risk Management of Temperature Controlled Shipments for Pharmaceutical Products leading IATA's Certification Program for the Air Transport of Pharma Shipments (CEIV).

Auditor and Instructor for the IATA Pharmaceutical Handling Diploma (CEIV) on Risk Management, Air Cargo Operations, Audit and Quality for Temperature Controlled Shipments, and having performed several Assessments and Trainings for different Air Cargo Industry Stakeholders along Europe and Latin America. 

Participating Talks and Sessions

Vijay Poonoosamy

Vice President International Affairs, Etihad Airways

Mr. Vijay Poonoosamy, a national of Mauritius, is a barrister (Middle Temple) with a law degree from the University of Nottingham, a Masters degree in International Law from the London School of Economics and Political Science, a Post Graduate Diploma in Air & Space Law from the London Institute of World Affairs and a Certificate in Company Direction from the Institute of Directors in New Zealand.

After practising as an Aviation Lawyer in London, Mr. Vijay Poonoosamy joined Air Mauritius in 1988 as Director, Legal and International Affairs and was later appointed its Managing Director. In June 2004 he was appointed Executive Chairman of Airports of Mauritius. He resigned in August 2005 to join Etihad Airways where he is the Vice President International Affairs.

Mr. Vijay Poonoosamy was the Chairman of the historical 1994 World-wide Air Transport Conference of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO). He was the Chairman of the 1999 ICAO Special Group on the Modernisation of the Warsaw Convention. He was also Chairman of the Air Transport Committee of the African Civil Aviation Commission, Chairman of the Legal Advisory Council of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and Chairman of IATA's Task Force on International Aviation Issues. He was the Moderator of the September 2008 ICAO Symposium on the Economics of Airports and Air Navigation Services.

Mr Vijay Poonoosamy is the Vice Chairman of the ICAO Special Committee on Aviation Security Conventions and a member of the Industry Affairs Committee of IATA.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Jay L Lingeswara

Deputy Director, Vietjet Air

Jay L Lingeswara is the Deputy Director Commercial, Strategy & Planning for VietJet Air. Jay has over 11 years' experience in commercial strategy planning and responsible for driving revenue performance with direct responsibility for network and planning and route performance management at VietJet Air. Representing VietJet Air in all conferences and fairs, with a particular focus on travel and transportation. Key staff advisor for all negotiations with governments entities, airport authorities and tourism boards, alliances and partnerships, and other business transactions. This includes internal and external alignment with all relevant business stakeholders focusing network, fleet and schedule planning. He gained his industry experience at Air Asia Group where he was responsible for commercial strategy, distribution, network and product development.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Datuk Badlisham Bin Ghazali

Managing Director, MAHB

Datuk Mohd Badlisham bin Ghazali was appointed as Managing Director of MAHB on 23 June 2014. He is currently the Chairman of Malaysia Airports (Sepang) Sdn. Bhd. and Malaysia Airports Sdn. Bhd. 

He began his career with Hewlett Packard Group (HPG) after his graduation from the United States of America in 1987. His career in HPG progressed well where he was steadily promoted over 18 years of service until reaching his last position there as the Director and Country General Manager of Hewlett Packard Technology Solutions Group in 2005.

Datuk Mohd Badlisham was appointed as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Non-Independent Director of the Multimedia Development Corporation (MDeC) on 16 January 2006. At the helm of MDeC, Datuk Mohd Badlisham led the development of the National Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Initiatives for Malaysia. The MSC Malaysia Initiative has evolved and grown, giving rise to over 3,400 ICT companies that are innovative and globally competitive via a thriving ICT ecosystem in Malaysia. The Digital Malaysia Initiative is underway towards a growing and robust digital economy for Malaysia.

As the CEO of MDeC, he was also a member of the Ministry of Education’s Cluster School Advisory Board and co-chairperson with Tan Sri Chief Secretary to the Government of Malaysia (KSN) on the Flagship Coordination Committee (FCC) and co-chair of the Ministry of Education’s Smart School Programme.

He graduated with a Bachelor of Science Degree majoring in Computer Science from the University of Northern Illinois, USA and Diploma in Computer Science from Universiti Teknologi MARA.

Datuk Mohd Badlisham currently sits on the Boards of MAHB wholly-owned subsidiary companies, namely Malaysia Airports (Niaga) Sdn. Bhd., Malaysia Airports Consultancy Services Sdn. Bhd., K.L. Airport Hotel Sdn. Bhd., Malaysia Airports Capital Berhad, Malaysia Airports Capital (Labuan) Limited, MAHB (Mauritius) Private Limited, Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen International Airport Investment Development and Operation Inc., and LGM Airport Operations Trade and Tourism Inc. He also sits on the Boards of MFMA Development Sdn. Bhd., GMR Hyderabad International Airport Limited, GMR Male International Airport Private Limited, Delhi International Airport Private Limited, and Sepang International Circuit Sdn. Bhd.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Erik Hansen

Senior Director, Domestic Policy, USTA

Erik Hansen serves as Senior Director of Domestic Policy for the U.S. Travel Association where he leads the development of the Association’s domestic and transportation policy agenda and represents the travel community before the Executive Branch and Congress.

Mr. Hansen focuses on issues related to aviation, surface transportation, infrastructure, and federal travel. Mr. Hansen also serves as the General Manager for the Connecting America Through Travel conference, which convenes travel industry leaders, transportation experts and policy influencers to help shape the discussion on revitalizing America’s travel infrastructure.

Before joining U.S. Travel Association, Mr. Hansen worked for five years on Capitol Hill as a legislative aide on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and for the office of Congresswoman Chellie Pingree. Prior to his work on Capitol Hill, Mr. Hansen served as Field Director for the reelection campaign of Congressman Steny H. Hoyer (D-Md.) and worked in the government affairs office of Prudential Financial.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Vincent Hodder

Chief Commercial Officer, FlyBe

Vincent Hodder is responsible for driving revenue performance with direct responsibility for network and schedule development and route performance management at Flybe. He is also responsible for revenue management and pricing. Vince was previously Chief Commercial Officer at VivaAerobus in Mexico, Executive Director and Senior Vice President of Operations in Tokyo for Jetstar, and Vice President for Strategic Development at Grupo TACA in El Salvador. He also spent three years at Bain & Co where he worked for airline clients in Australia and South Africa. Vince holds a BA in Commerce and an MBA from Melbourne Business School, University of Melbourne.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Peter Cerdá

Regional VP, Americas, IATA

Peter Cerdá is the Regional Vice President in the Americas for IATA, the trade association whose 240 member airlines transport more than 84% of total air traffic. He leads a multinational team of professionals which proactively pursue IATA’s industry priorities with governmental authorities and industry stakeholders to make the air transport industry safer, more secure, efficient and profitable.

Peter possesses a wealth of senior industry experience acquired over a long and successful career in aviation. Most recently, he served as Regional Director for Safety, Operations and Infrastructure for the Americas and Atlantic until 2013.

Fluent in English and Spanish, Peter was born in Spain and received his Master’s Degree in Aeronautics and Aviation Management from Embry Riddle University and a Bachelor of Business Administration at Florida International University.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Bert van der Stege

Vice President & Chief Commercial Officer, Halifax International Airport Authority

Halifax Stanfield is Atlantic Canada’s gateway, a fast-growing airport constantly rated by passengers as among the best in the Americas thanks to its unique customer service culture. Halifax also has a unique cargo operation with live lobster in the belly of most passenger aircraft and dedicated freighters.

As a Vice President & CCO, Bert is responsible for growing both aeronautical and non-aeronautical revenue as well as Customer Relations, Airport Experience, Real Estate Development, Stakeholder Relations, Marketing & Corporate Communications. 

Bert has a diverse background in airline and airport management in both strategic and operational roles. He has travelled extensively, lived and worked on six continents. Bert spent 10 years at Lufthansa in a number of leadership positions and was Vice President Commercial and Chief Restructuring Officer with several regional carriers before joining Halifax Stanfield.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Alvaro Leite

Project Director, Airline Marketing, Vinci Airports

Alvaro Leite has 12 years of airport experience in varying roles. Since September 2014, he has been employed as the Project Director Airline Marketing at VINCI Airports based in Paris.

In this last role he is responsible for assessing the aviation potential for the bids and M&A projects in which VINCI Airports participate with especial focus on the Americas and Caribe. Together with providing a long term traffic forecast and defining the future strategy for potential new airports, he also plays an on ongoing role in the integration and optimisation of some of the Airline Marketing Departments of VINCI Airports portfolio (consisting of some 37 airports worldwide). 

Since joining VINCI Airports, he participated in several tender processes around the world and has a been a key member of the successful team which won the concession of Osaka Airports (two airports in Japan), Aerodom (six airports in Dominican Republic) and Salvador Airport in Brazil.

Prior to this, he worked for 9 years at Porto Airport (ACI/ASQ Best European Airport 2007, 2016) where he was responsible for airline marketing. Porto was a very successful story. From 3.4 million passengers in 2006, it served 7 million passengers in 2014 and reached 9M passengers in 2016. Eight new airlines commenced operations in that seven year period, helping the airport to pass from 20 direct services to 65 direct services at the time.

Due to the nature of his roles he has a vast knowledge of the aviation industry, the markets in different geographies and the challenges airlines and airports face.

During his studies and professional career Alvaro Leite lived in five different countries and he is currently living in Paris.  He holds an International MBA (Universidade Catolica Porto / ESADE Barcelona) and a Masters in Electronic Engineering  and he is fluent in five languages. His professional path helped me to learn, understand and appreciate different cultures and people and to adapt to multicultural environments, an important attribute given the international nature of the aviation industry.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Jeremy Pennington

Director, Commercial, Vantage Airport Group

As Commercial Director for Vantage Airport Group, Jeremy Pennington is responsible for developing and executing strategies for aeronautical and non-aeronautical programs across the company’s global network. Jeremy joined Vantage in 2015 as Air Service Development Manager, quickly taking over responsibilities as Air Service Development Director in 2016. Following significant traffic growth within the network, Jeremy was subsequently asked to lead the new consolidated Commercial program in 2017.

Prior to Vantage, Jeremy was with Heathrow Airport Ltd., where he held multiple senior management positions within the commercial portfolio, including airline business development, non-aeronautical revenues and property management. In June 2014, he was an integral part of the delivery and transition of Star Alliance into Heathrow’s new Terminal 2.

Jeremy is experienced in airport revenue development and a regular public speaker on commercial trends in the aviation industry. He holds an MBA from the University of Cambridge, Judge Business School and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and International Relations from the University of British Columbia.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Graeme Jackson

Head of Partnerships, The Travel Foundation

Graeme is responsible for developing and managing corporate partnerships for sustainable tourism charity, the Travel Foundation.

The Travel Foundation brings together tourism stakeholders, creating innovative, practical partnerships to improve the impacts of tourism in destinations – bringing greater benefits for local communities, the environment and tourists.

A trained journalist, Graeme joined the Travel Foundation team 2011, following a decade in the fields of Public Relations and marketing where he represented and consulted for the private, public and third-sector in fields as diverse as business finance, wines & spirits, sustainability and energy.

www.thetravelfoundation.org.uk

https://uk.linkedin.com/in/graemejackson1

Participating Talks and Sessions

Juan Carlos Zuazua

CEO, VivaAerobus

As part of Viva Aerobus’ founding team, Juan Carlos represents exactly what Viva Aerobus represents: opportunity, fairness, progress.

He started in the Commercial Department and assumed the position of CEO in 2010. Since then, Viva Aerobus has grown a Compound Annual Growth Rate of 18%.

Under Juan Carlos’ leadership, Viva Aerobus became the fastest growing Mexican airline in passenger numbers, achieving a 33% growth in 2016, as well as record revenue and ancillary revenue growth, operational performance and profit margins without deviating from the company’s purpose: giving everyone the opportunity to fly.

Juan Carlos stands for a human approach that moved him to go one step further improving Viva Aerobus’ service under the “New Viva”. As part of this, in under two years he led a fleet transition, implemented core system changes and state of the art technology and executed 25 initiatives to benefit passengers.

He names his team of great professionals as the most important factor in these achievements and says teamwork, high standards and a strong focus on results are key in accomplishing anything.

As a humanist, he’s constantly reinforcing Viva Aerobus’ cultural environment with the best development models so all his collaborators can reach their maximum potential.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Wilken Bellmann

Head of Network Planning and Scheduling, SunExpress

As Head of Network Planning and Scheduling for SunExpress, Wilken Bellmann's responsibilities include: 

  •  Network development and diversification for SunExpress and SunExpress Germany
  • Negotiations with tourism boards, airports and governments entities for support and incentive schemes
  • Streamlining and alignment of network planning, flight planning and scheduling processes
  • Internal alignment with operational business units
  • Acquisition and management of interline and other airline partnerships
  • Representing SunExpress at industry conferences and fairs

Participating Talks and Sessions

Leon Verhallen

Head of Aviation Marketing, Brussels Airport

Léon was approached in 2006 by Brussels Airport to set up and organize a new aviation development department after its privatization. Aviation Development at Brussels Airport takes responsibility for airline marketing, B2B and B2C passenger marketing, market analysis, traffic forecasting, market research, and aviation strategy. Brussels Airport has become a regular winner of the Routes Marketing Awards, including winning Routes World in 2012 and 2014. Léon started his career at Fokker Aircraft in 1986 after his study Business Economics at Tilburg University in The Netherlands. Between 1998 and 2006 he worked at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol in the role of Market Research Manager, Marketing Manager and Head of Aviation Marketing.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Jochen Schnadt

Chief Commercial Officer, bmi Regional

A Senior Aviation Executive having worked in various commercial, strategic, planning and operational roles most recently with Monarch Airlines as Commercial Director and previously with such companies as Aer Lingus, Qatar Airways, BA CityFlyer, SkyWest, AWAS and Eurocontrol. With a track record of achieving and exceeding targets,

 Jochen is a firm believer in the need for constant change and innovation and has been involved in various leading edge projects and developments during his 20 year career in commercial aviation.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Olivier Jager

CEO, Forward Keys

Olivier Jager is the Co-founder and CEO of ForwardKeys, a tactical intelligence company analysing 14 million daily booking transactions to predict future travel patterns for businesses worldwide and help them monitor and anticipate traveller arrivals and trends.

Before launching ForwardKeys in 2010, Olivier had already accumulated cutting-edge experience in IT and travel with companies including AOL, Amadeus, PhoCusWright, Market Metrix and TravelCLICK. 

A strategic thinker with a zest for innovating and solving problems, Olivier’s expertise has focused on marketing and distribution, management and business development.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Nimalan Vikneswaran

Head of Network Planning, Malindo Air

Nimalan Vikneswaran is the Head of Network Planning at Malindo Air, a full service carrier based out of Kuala Lumpur International Airport, Malaysia.

Nimalan is tasked with the short and long term planning of the airline’s network which is spread across Asia Pacific and made possible by a growing fleet of 47 Aircraft, mainly comprised of Boeing and ATR.

He holds a degree in Accounting & Finance and has over 8 years of experience in the aviation industry covering a multitude of areas which include amongst others, Aircraft Leasing.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Edmond Rose

Independent Aviation Consultant

Edmond Rose has wide experience in aviation working for British Airways and Virgin Atlantic and as a consultant.  He spent six years on Virgin Atlantic’s leadership team directing fleet and network planning, partnerships, RM and pricing, culminating in negotiating and implementing Virgin’s joint venture with Delta.  As a consultant, Edmond has worked for airlines, airports and aerospace companies in Europe, Asia and the Americas on projects such as network strategy, low cost carrier principles, joint venture planning and airport air service development. Before working in aviation, Edmond was a British diplomat and served in India and China.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Chikage Miyoshi

Centre for Air Transport Management, Cranfield University

Dr Chikage Miyoshi features a unique background as an academic member equipped with an extensive industry track record. After completing her PhD at Cranfield University about air transport liberalisation in Japan, Chika stayed on to become a lecturer, reading ‘Air transport market analysis and demand forecasting’ as well as ‘Cost and Benefit analysis’.  Prior to Cranfield University, she worked in various roles for a number of airlines including All Nippon Airways and Lufthansa, while she also formed part of the core start-up team of Skymark Airlines.

In addition, she has extensive consulting experience in the areas of air transport market analysis, route selection, demand forecasting for airports, due diligence for airport privatisation, as well as feasibility studies and business plans for start-up airlines.

Dr Miyoshi‘s main research interests span the fields of demand forecasting, network connectivity, passenger profiling, travel mode choice modelling, cost benefit analysis, and aviation and the environment. Chikage holds a BA from Osaka University, an MBA from Waseda University and a PhD from Cranfield University.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Miguel Quiñones

Air & Maritime Access Director, Puerto Rico Tourism Company

A lawyer by trade, Miguel left the courtrooms behind for good in 2013 to start his own travel consulting business, PMM Travel Consulting. Shortly thereafter, Miguel became a travel writer as well mostly concentrating on matters related to frequent flyer programs. Between 2014 and 2016, over 500 of his articles were published on popular travel blogs and web sites such as FrugalTravelGuy.com, PointMetothePlane.com (a member of BoardingArea.com), Skift.com and The Award Wallet Blog. In January 2017, Miguel accepted an offer to become the Air and Maritime Access Director of the Puerto Rico Tourism Company, a position he has held for the past eight months.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Carlos Criado

Commercial Director, Corporación Quiport

Carlos Criado, originally from Spain, has over 30 year- experience in the aviation industry working for a variety of airports.

He is currently the Business Director and Legal representative for Corporación Quiport. He was appointed to this position since July 2009 and has been in charge of developing and implementing strategies to increase both aeronautical and non-aeronautical revenue for the New Quito International Airport which opened on February 20th. Mr. Criado has helped generate an estimated 100% increase in commercial revenues vs. the old airport. His focus has also been in the route development side of the business ensuring airlines increase current frequencies and open new routes.

 Prior to moving to Ecuador to assist in development of the New Quito International Airport, Mr. Criado worked from April 2005 to July 2009 as the Commercial Director of Grupo Aeroportuario del Pacífico in Mexico, handling 10 airports across the country.

Previously he was the Head of International Relations and Marketing in Spanish Airports and Air Navigation (Aena) Airports. Until 1989, he was the operator and supervisor in the Operations Center of Madrid Barajas Airport.

Mr. Criado has chaired and been a member of several international committees within ACI ( Airports Council International) where he has shared his industry knowledge and has worked in the development of best practices. He has also participated in numerous international airports and aviation forums as a speaker.

A major focus for Mr. Criado has been working in route development programs in different airports. He was part of the Barcelona Route Committee from 2003 to 2005 and was Commissioner of the Southern California Routes Committee from 2006 to 2009.

Mr. Criado holds a Bachelor degree in English Philology from the Complutense University of Madrid and has taken over 20 courses and seminars related to the aviation industry throughout his career.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Scott Laurence

Sr. Vice President, JetBlue Airways

As Senior Vice President, Airline Planning, Scott Laurence is responsible for all aspects of JetBlue’s network strategy and operational planning. In addition, he oversees JetBlue’s airline partnership portfolio – currently comprising more than 40 airlines across the globe – as well as international operations, charter operations, engineering, manpower planning and continuous improvement.


Mr. Laurence joined JetBlue in April 2008 as Director, Network Planning and served as Vice President, Network Planning from 2009 until his promotion to Senior Vice President in 2014.


Prior to joining JetBlue, Mr. Laurence spent nine years at United Airlines in various planning, revenue management and finance positions. Mr. Laurence’s airline career began at US Airways, where he worked for three years in planning and revenue management positions.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Yolanta Strikitsa

Director, Strikitsa Consulting

MBA from California State University Hayward (USA), BA from Gnesinykh State College (RF). During the last 15 years Yolanta has dedicated herself to management consulting and executive search. She has been living and working in USA, Russia and UK, where in 2003 she set up her own business. Prior to Strikitsa Consulting, Yolanta has been working for Morgan Chase, Leucadia National Private Equity and Price Waterhouse. Yolanta is fluent in English, Polish and Russian.

Strikitsa Consulting has been specializing in executive search and consulting services to airports and airlines from 2003 and have completed assignments in UK, Europe, Russia & CIS and SE Asia. 

Participating Talks and Sessions

Martin Langaas

Director Cargo - Traffic Development, Avinor Oslo Airport

At Avinor since June 2016. Responsible for the development of new routes and real-estate activities related to cargo at Oslo Airport.

Leading the project of building the world largest seafood air cargo center at Oslo Airport to open in 2020. Been successful in making Oslo Airport the largest freighter hub in Northern Europe and a cargo growth of 37,5% cargo through OSL in the first year in office. Background from sales and logistics since 2007 with responsibility of expanding businesses into new foreign markets.

Educated in Norway and Australia in commerce and sales. Spent 6 years prior to that as a professional cyclist.

Family father with 2 small kids and a Swedish Spouse enjoying our life at our country house outside Oslo or at our summer residence in Italy.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Vladimir Zubkov

Secretary General, TIACA

Graduated from the Civil Aviation Academy in St-Petersburg.

Secretary General of TIACA (The International Air Cargo Association) from 1 January 2017.

Between 2008 and 2016 was Commercial Director of AirBridgeCargo Airlines and later Vice President of Volga-Dnepr Group of Companies, responsible for relations with international organizations and governments. In this role maintained relations with ICAO, IATA, ACI, WCO, TIACA and UN, and led a multi-disciplinary team in the introduction of paperless environment for cargo transportation (e-freight and e-AWB) in Russia and on development of e-commerce in the transportation sector, aviation security regime and training requirements.

He started his career at Sheremetyevo International Airport as ground handling manager, later working for Aeroflot as General Manager for Denmark and Sweden, later General Manager for the UK and Ireland; before moving to its HQ as Deputy Commercial Director and Director of International Finance and Accounting. He then spent 22 years working for ICAO as Director of the Air Transport Bureau and Director, Planning and Global Coordination. 

In 2011, he was included in the list of the Top 1,000 Russian managers and was ranked in the top 5 in Russia in the category “Government and Industry Relations” (Transport sector).

Participating Talks and Sessions

Alan Peaford

Managing Director, Aerocomm

Andrew Williams

Group Director of Aviation and Maritime Brands, UBM

Andrew joined UBM in January 2014 in preparation for the acquisition of Seatrade, which took place at the end of July 2014. Andrew is responsible for, along with the senior management team, the day-to-day management and strategic development of the Seatrade Cruise and Maritime events and more recently the Aviation portfolio (Routes and ASM) of UBM`s businesses.

Andrew has a background in events, having been Managing Director of the UK`s National Boat Shows who organise two of Europe’s largest consumer boat shows. Prior to that, Andrew worked at many well-known international organisations including UK Managing Director at MGM Films and Nintendo UK, as well as senior management positions for over ten years within The Walt Disney Company.

He originates from Wales and is a devoted follower of his nation’s rugby team.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Alexandra Goldschmidt

Senior Director Network Management, AUSTRIAN AIRLINES

Website

Azim Barodawala

CEO, Volantio Inc.

Azim Barodawala is the CEO and Co-Founder of Volantio Inc., a travel technology company based in Atlanta, GA, launched in 2014.  Volantio focuses on revenue optimisation and marketing automation for the travel sector, currently working with airlines such as Qantas, Emirates, Alaska Airlines, Volaris, Jetstar, and others.

Azim brings over a decade of travel and technology experience to Volantio, with a particular focus on airline strategy and travel distribution. Prior to Volantio, Azim served as Group Head of Strategy for the Jetstar Group based in Melbourne, Australia. Azim also spent over 3 years working for The Boston Consulting Group, with a particular focus on travel and transportation. Azim is a frequent contributor to industry publications such as Airline Business. He received his BA from Duke University, an MA from the University of Pennsylvania, and his MBA from the Wharton School.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Maribel Rodriguez

Regional Director of Southern Europe and LATAM, World Travel & Tourism Council

Maribel Rodriguez joined the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) in June 2014 as Regional Director, Southern Europe and Latin America. 

With Chairmen and Chief Executives of 160 of the world's leading Travel & Tourism companies as its Members, WTTC has a unique mandate and overview on all matters related to business and leisure travel. The organisation works to raise awareness of Travel & Tourism as one of the world's largest industries, driving employment of 292 million people and generating over 10 per cent of world GDP at $7.6 trillion.

She has built an extensive network within the Travel and Tourism industry public and private sector, accumulating over 18 years of sales, marketing, communication and commercial experience in Europe.

Maribel was Commercial Director and Board Member for Travelodge Hotels Spain from May 2008 to June 2014, serving as Council Member of Madrid Hotels Association (AEHM) and the Tourism Commission to promote Madrid as a destination.

Prior to this she spent 11 years in the aviation industry, where she gained extensive experience in all aspects of commercial aviation. She managed the introduction of low cost airline operations into the Southern European market for the following companies: Virgin Express, Go-Fly, EasyJet and Ryanair. At Ryanair she supervised the opening of 21 airports and over 190 routes across Europe, setting up multiple operational bases on the continent. Additionally, she worked for GB Airways, franchise partner of British Airways in Spain, Portugal and France, which was eventually acquired and integrated into that company.

Executive MBA from Comillas ICADE Business School and Industrial Psychology Degree from University of Salamanca, with secondments in Coimbra, Portugal and Leuven, Belgium. She is currently undertaking a Senior Executive Program for Travel & Tourism at IESE & JSF.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Doug Lansky

Futurist, Thought Leader & Travel Writer

Doug Lansky is an acclaimed keynote speaker and tourism development thought leader who advises destinations and tourism companies around the world -- from Singapore to South Dakota, Australia to Aruba, Google Travel to Amadeus – on strategic planning, marketing issues, visitor experience, industry trends and sustainability.  Doug, an American who has been living and working overseas for 25 years, has a background as a travel journalist and travel editor, writing for dozens of major publications that range from National Geographic Traveler to The Guardian to Skift, and travelling to over 100 countries.  

Participating Talks and Sessions

Santiago Garcia Mila

Deputy Executive Director, Port of Barcelona

Santiago Garcia Mila attained a master’s degree in Economics and Business Administration from the University of Barcelona and two postgraduate studies: Marketing Strategy (ESADE) and General Management (IESE). Prior to his appointment with the Port of Barcelona, he worked for twenty years with different private companies in the area of international marketing.

He is currently Deputy General Manager of the Port of Barcelona; President of the International Association of Ports and Harbours, IAPH; Member of the Executive Committee of the European Sea Ports Organisation, ESPO; President of PortIC, the Barcelona’s Port Community System; Chief Executive Officer of tmZ, Zaragoza Inland Terminal; and associate lecturer in International Marketing at the University of Barcelona.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Oscar Oliver

General Director of CETMO and Former Commercial Director, Aeroports de Catalunya

Since 2011 I’m in charge of the Commercial Direction of Aeroports de Catalunya, the public agency of the Government of Catalonia that directly manages two small airports, Lleida-Alguaire airport and Andorra-La Seu airport, and contributes to manage other three airports in Catalonia (Barcelona airport, Girona airport and Reus airport) collaborating with the owner and manager of them, the Spanish public agency AENA. Aeroports de Catalunya also has as a purpose to contribute to developing the air transport industry in Catalonia, working with other Catalan institutions in order to attract new companies and to develop new economic activities in this sense.

During the last 5 years I have had the opportunity to attend every year the World Route Development Forum representing Barcelona airport. Since 2012, I attended also Routes Asia representing Barcelona airport.

I have organised and participated in a lot of business trips to different Asian countries in order to maintain high-level conversations and negotiations with airlines. The main objective of all these years has been to improve the long haul offer of Barcelona airport, especially working together with the airlines from Asia and signing agreements with them.

Since 2014 I have been in charge of the candidacy and the organisation of the World Routes 2017 in our city, Barcelona. This project is the result of a good cooperation between different Spanish and Catalan public and private institutions: the Government of Catalonia, the Barcelona City Council, the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and AENA.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Octavi Bono

Director General of Tourism, Government of Catalonia

Currently Director-General for Tourism for the Government of Catalonia and Executive Vice President of the Catalan Tourist Board. Previously, director of the Tarragona Provincial Council Regional Tourist Board for 21 years. In addition, served as deputy manager in a number of hotels on the Costa Daurada and in association with Catalunya Caixa for three years.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Dan Pearce

Managing Director, TTG Media

Following completion of a management buy-out in 2013, Daniel Pearce is managing director and owner of TTG Media Limited. 

The proud publisher of Routes News and the delegate directories at Routes events since 2015, the new company continues to connect buyers and sellers of travel across the UK trade and beyond, with a business stretching from website ttgmedia.com and quarterly magazine ttgluxury to an innovative portfolio of events including the TTG Travel Awards, the TTG On Tour series of roadshows, the expanding TTG LGBT network and a string of events in luxury travel. 

The company also has put a new focus on its international network of TTG partners, which stretch from TTG Nordic in Copenhagen to TTG Asia in Singapore.

More than 60 years since it was first published in 1953, the business continues to be underpinned by TTG, the magazine that continues to inform, inspire and champion the UK travel industry every week.

Participating Talks and Sessions

John Strickland

Director, JLS Consulting

Director, John Strickland, is a graduate of the University of York and has held senior positions including network planning and revenue management with a number of airlines including British Caledonian, British Airways, KLMuk and Buzz.  He was instrumental in the decision by KLM to establish the low cost airline Buzz and in its selection of new routes. His 34 years of experience have exposed him to the business models of regional, global, legacy and low cost carriers.

JLS Consulting was established in 2003 and now serves a wide range of clients including airports, airlines and investors whose businesses require strategic insight, guidance and advisory services concerning the air transport industry.

John provides expert independent business and financial commentary on the sector for leading media, including the BBC, Sky, CNN, Bloomberg and the Financial Times.  He is also a regular conference chair and moderator at industry events, frequently interviewing leading senior executives.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Nigel Mayes

SVP, ASM

Nigel has over 15 years’ experience in route development and is responsible for product development at ASM. He gained his industry experience at Birmingham Airport where he was responsible for long haul route development, and he also spent six years developing commercial revenues and industry links at Routes, including an online forum for the route development community.

Participating Talks and Sessions

Ben Lynam

Head of Communications, The Travel Foundation

Ben is responsible for communicating the work of the Travel Foundation, the charity for the sustainable management of tourism.

The Travel Foundation brings together tourism stakeholders, creating innovative, practical partnerships to improve the impacts of tourism in destinations – bringing greater benefits for local communities, the environment and tourists.

Previously, Ben worked in the public sector in various roles with a focus on environmental stewardship, and created campaigns that successfully influenced behaviour and government policy.

www.thetravelfoundation.org.uk

https://www.linkedin.com/in/blynam

Participating Talks and Sessions