Emirates SkyCargo has appointed Abdulla Alkhallafi as its new cargo manager for India. Alkhallafi will be based out of Delhi and will be overseeing all commercial and operational aspects of Emirates SkyCargo in one of the air cargo carrier’s most important markets globally. He will be taking over from Keki Patel, who will be retiring after his tenure of more than 15 years as cargo manager for India with Emirates.

Alkhallafi has previously worked as cargo manager for North India for Emirates since June 2017. He is a UAE national who joined Emirates in 2014 as part of Emirates SkyCargo’s Commercial Management Programme. Following his initial training at Dubai, Alkhallafi was posted to Singapore where he had the opportunity to gain first-hand experience of Emirates’ operations in an overseas market. 

Nabil Sultan, Emirates divisional senior vice president, Cargo said: “We are delighted to appoint Abdulla Alkhallafi as the cargo manager for our India operations. As a graduate of Emirates SkyCargo’s Commercial Management programme, Abdulla has shown immense potential in his previous roles and we have no doubt that his dynamism and his understanding of the air cargo industry will help drive further growth for Emirates SkyCargo in India. We would also like to thank Keki Patel for his extensive contribution to the business over close to two decades.”

With over 170 weekly flights to nine destinations, Emirates SkyCargo facilitates an important volume of trade between India and the rest of the world. In addition to transporting cargo on passenger flights, the carrier also operates scheduled freighter flights to Mumbai and Ahmedabad.