Wolfgang Meier has decided to exit the Russian air transport heavyweight Volga-Dnepr / AirBridgeCargo and seek new business challenges in the air freight industry. In an internal farewell-letter to the V-D/ABC staff, passed on to CargoForwarder Global by Dutch sources, he confirmed his decision but leaves open where he intends to continue his journey.
Wolfgang has been with the Volga-Dnepr Group for seven years and has had responsibility in different managerial positions. Asked by CargoForwarder Global in a telephone call about the reasons
that led him to leave the Group, he provides a very simple and convincing answer:
“I stood at a crossroad in my life where I had to decide to either continue my career within Volga and ABC for the next ten years or so, ending it there some day or to take on a new professional
challenge.”
Now it became clear that he opted for the latter
Speaking about his contribution as Head of Marketing and Development to the successive upswing of the Russian aviation group, he replies very modestly: “It wasn’t really me but the entire team
that did a fantastic and highly professional job. This dedication resulted in ABC becoming the benchmark of the industry and Volga-Dnepr the global number one as capacity provider for
transporting outsized and heavy cargo shipments.”
From being smiled at to growing respect
Whilst looking back, the former Panalpina manager stresses that although against all odds, it was the right decision by Volga owner Alexey Isaikin to establish AirBridgeCargo as line-haul arm of
the charter enterprise, thus starting a second business avenue for capturing additional market shares. This has paid off until today and will as things stand continue doing so. “For my part I say
chapeau to what Mr Isaikin established in the past and keeps on establishing,” Wolfgang applauds. “At first, many industrial players laughed at ABC, but meanwhile this has transformed into
respect shown by many customer reactions.”
Looking ahead Wolfgang says that he is a born optimist that is always on the lookout for new opportunities. There is one point however where he leaves no doubt: “No matter what job I’ll do next,
Moscow will remain being the centre of my life.” There, his wife and their five children abode.
Heiner Siegmund
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