Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Thirty-three years in travel across the UAE, Oman, Saudi Arabia, and India. I started in corporate travel in Chennai in 1992 and spent the next three decades moving across markets — each one adding a different commercial dimension to the last. Corporate travel taught me discipline and accountability. Retail networks taught me product and people. Direct airline sales — including heading sales for Saudia across the UAE and Oman, one of the highest-volume corridors in the region — taught me how yield, distribution, and trade strategy actually shape revenue. And Umrah, which has been part of my work since the early 2000s, taught me something none of the others could — the weight of responsibility that comes with facilitating an act of faith. Most careers in this industry go deep in one direction. Mine went wide first, and deep in several. That combination is harder to build than it looks — and more useful than I expected. #Travel #Aviation #Umrah #IslamicTourism #CorporateTravel #AirlineGSA #AirlineSales #GCC #TravelIndustry #UAE #Oman #Saudia #KSA
Reporting to the CEO, with responsibility for GCC commercial operations and strategic growth initiatives across the group. Founded AlMaqam — Orient Travel's dedicated Umrah division — bringing structured Islamic tourism into one of the UAE's leading travel groups for the first time. Secured flyadeal as a new GSA representation for the UAE, strengthening the group's position in the Saudi corridor. Established the group's presence in Saudi Arabia and expanded operations in Oman.
The UAE and Oman represented Saudia's most commercially significant markets outside the Kingdom — and leading sales across both required more than managing the trade. With sixteen daily flights to Saudi Arabia from the UAE alone, including eight daily rotations on Dubai–Riyadh, one of the world's busiest origin-destination pairs, the responsibility was to grow revenue intelligently across a high-volume, high-stakes operation. The corporate market in both countries demanded a structured B2B approach — building relationships with multinationals, trading houses, government entities, and key travel management companies, while ensuring Saudia remained the preferred carrier for business travel to and through the Kingdom. Managing the agency and trade network alongside direct corporate accounts required a clear understanding of how revenue flows across both channels. The Umrah market was an equally important pillar. Both the UAE and Oman have large national Muslim populations with strong religious motivation to travel to the Holy Cities — a natural and recurring demand that, when properly developed through the right B2B partnerships and trade channels, becomes a reliable year-round revenue stream rather than a seasonal spike. Developing Umrah as a structured commercial segment alongside corporate traffic was a deliberate strategic choice that improved both yield and portfolio balance. Growing sixth freedom traffic through Saudia's Saudi hubs added a third revenue dimension — extending the commercial reach of both markets well beyond point-to-point Saudi Arabia travel. The combined effect was a diversified, commercially resilient portfolio across the UAE and Oman.
A six-year chapter defined by product leadership across Oman's outbound travel market. With full P&L responsibility across holidays, Umrah, medical tourism, corporate travel, and airline GSA — and a team of professionals across Oman — the role was fundamentally about building travel products that the Omani market wanted and could trust. Founded AlEman — a dedicated Umrah and Hajj division built in partnership with local authorities and Saudi suppliers. Brought structured, year-round Islamic tourism programmes into a mainstream travel business and established AlEman as a recognised Umrah brand in Oman. Developed a comprehensive outbound holidays programme through tourism board partnerships and regional DMC relationships — packaging destinations, pricing competitively, and creating a product range that gave Omani travellers a genuine alternative to booking direct. Oversaw a standalone medical tourism department — managing outbound travel for patients seeking treatment abroad, from hospital coordination and visa facilitation through to full travel logistics. Managed the airline GSA portfolio including flydubai and Air France-KLM, and secured PIA as a new representation — broadening the agency's reach across leisure and expatriate travel segments. Secured the FCM Travel Solutions representation for Oman — a globally recognised corporate travel brand — with day-to-day operations managed by the corporate travel division. Introduced segment-level reporting across all units to bring pricing discipline and margin visibility to the business.