Akbar Al Baker (; born 1962) is a
Qatar
Qatar, officially the State of Qatar, is a country in West Asia. It occupies the Geography of Qatar, Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it shares Qatar–Saudi Arabia border, its sole land b ...
i businessman who was the former
CEO of
Qatar Airways. He was also the chairman of
Qatar Tourism until October 22, 2023. Under Qatar Airways Group, Al-Baker was also the CEO of
Hamad International Airport, which opened in 2014.
Successor:Mohammed Akber
In May 2021, Al-Baker was appointed chairman of the
Oneworld
Oneworld (Computer reservations system, CRS: *O, stylised as oneworld) is a global airline alliance consisting of 14 member airlines. It was founded on 1 February 1999. The alliance's stated objective is to be the first choice airline alliance f ...
airline alliance
An airline alliance is an aviation industry arrangement between two or more airlines agreeing to cooperate on a substantial level. Alliances may provide marketing branding to facilitate travelers making inter-airline codeshare agreement, codeshare ...
.
Early life and education
Al-Baker was born in Doha, Qatar.
As a child, he studied at
St. Peter's School, a boarding school, in the
Panchgani hills in
Maharashtra
Maharashtra () is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to th ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
. He later moved to
Mumbai
Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...
and graduated from
Sydenham College of Commerce and Economics
Sydenham College of Commerce and Economics is a college located in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. It is affiliated to the Dr. Homi Bhabha State University. The college offers undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in management. It was awarded a r ...
.
He holds a private pilot license.
Career
Al-Baker became chief executive officer of
Qatar Airways in 1997. Prior to this appointment, he worked at the Civil Aviation Directorate of Qatar. He is also the former chairman of the Qatar Tourism Authority. He is CEO of several divisions of Qatar's national airline, including Qatar Executive, Qatar Airways Holidays, Qatar Aviation Services, Qatar Duty Free Company, Doha International Airport, Internal Media Services, Qatar Distribution Company and Qatar Aircraft Catering Company.
Al-Baker led the development of
Hamad International Airport, which opened its first phase in May 2014 and is now home to Qatar Airways. As of 2017 the airport services all inbound and outbound flights out of
Doha
Doha ( ) is the capital city and main financial hub of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf coast in the east of the country, north of Al Wakrah and south of Al Khor (city), Al Khor and Lusail, it is home to most of the country's population. It ...
.
In June 2019, Al Baker announced that Qatar Airways would be buying a stake in a sixth overseas airline before the end of the year. The company has not yet been named, but would join the airlines interests on the
International Airlines Group
International Consolidated Airlines Group S.A., Trade name, trading as International Airlines Group and usually shortened to IAG, is a British-Spanish Multinational corporation, multinational airline holding company with its registered office in ...
,
LATAM Airlines Group,
Cathay Pacific
Cathay Pacific Airways Limited, or simply Cathay Pacific, is the flag carrier of Hong Kong, with its head office and main airline hub, hub located at Hong Kong International Airport. The airline's operations and its subsidiaries have schedule ...
, and
China Southern Airlines
China Southern Airlines (branded as China Southern) is a major airline in China, headquartered in Guangzhou, Guangdong. It is one of the three major airlines in the country, along with Air China and China Eastern Airlines.
Established on 1 ...
Co.
Al-Baker is a member of the executive committee of the
Arab Air Carriers' Organization, a member of the board of governors of the
International Air Transport Association, and a
non-executive director of
Heathrow Airport Holdings
Heathrow Airport Holdings is a company that operates and manages Heathrow Airport based in London, England. It was formed by the privatisation of the British Airports Authority as BAA plc as part of Margaret Thatcher's privatisation of governmen ...
.
In May 2021, Al-Baker was appointed to the role of governing board chairman of the
Oneworld
Oneworld (Computer reservations system, CRS: *O, stylised as oneworld) is a global airline alliance consisting of 14 member airlines. It was founded on 1 February 1999. The alliance's stated objective is to be the first choice airline alliance f ...
alliance.
In October 2023, Al Baker announced that he would be stepping down as CEO of Qatar Airways after nearly 27 years leading the company. The resignation will take effect on November 5, 2023. His announcement came just one day after he was replaced as chairman of
Qatar Tourism by his protege
Saad bin Ali Al Kharji, who previously served as vice chair under Al-Baker.
Controversies
In 2015, it was reported that Qatar Airways told its female flight attendants that they could lose their jobs if they were pregnant.
On August 26, 2015, Qatar airways updated its policy on marriage and pregnancy for its female cabin crew. In June, after the
International Labour Organization
The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a United Nations agency whose mandate is to advance social and economic justice by setting international labour standards. Founded in October 1919 under the League of Nations, it is one of the firs ...
's (ILO) report on Qatar to change its employment rules to end discrimination, Qatar Airways has loosened its restrictions prohibiting female cabin crew from getting married and having children. Pregnant women will now be provided temporary ground jobs under the new contract and they can get married whenever they choose as long as they notify the company.
In May 2016, ''The Daily Telegraph'' reported that Al Baker said backpackers were not welcome in Qatar because they "are just there to lie on the beach and spend as little as possible" and the country wanted to "attract people of higher standard".
In July 2017, in a speech at a dinner in Ireland, Al Baker said US airlines were "crap" and their passengers were "always being served by grandmothers". He stated that the average age of Qatar Airways cabin crew was 26. He later said that his remarks might not reflect his "true sentiments about cabin crew".
On June 5, 2018, speaking at a press conference following his election to chairman of the
International Air Transport Association at the association's annual meeting in
Sydney
Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
, Australia, he told reporters that, regarding Qatar Airways' management, "Of course it has to be led by a man because it is a very challenging position." Although Al-Baker later apologized, he stopped short of recanting his belief that being CEO of an international airline is too challenging a job for a woman. He claimed he was attempting to make a joke at the time.
In 2019, Al-Baker alleged that
Changi Airport's Jewel was a copy of previously announced expansion plans for
Hamad International Airport. Al-Baker was quoted as saying: "When I show you the images later (of the planned enhancements), you will realize that somebody copied our design, which was already on the table nearly six years ago... We had individuals from that country, I will not name it, that took our design and did it." Changi Airport Group's chief executive, Lee Seow Hiang, however, has rebutted the allegation, telling ''The Straits Times'': "We value the originality and creativity of ideas as we innovate to elevate the Changi experience for all our visitors. We respect intellectual property rights and expect the same of all our partners."
External links
Interview, on Al Jazeera, following Qatar crisis, June 2017
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baker, Akbar
1962 births
Arab Muslims
Chief executives in the airline industry
Living people
Qatari chief executives
21st-century Qatari businesspeople
Qatari economists
Qatari expatriates in India
Qatari Muslims
Qatari Sunni Muslims