The Frankfurt headquartered freight carrier has appointed Swiss national, Ashwin Bhat as new Chief Executive Officer. The airline’s top position became vacant after his predecessor, Dorothea von Boxberg, was nominated CEO of
Lufthansa Group member, Brussels Airlines, only days ago.
Mr. Bhat will be the first non-German helmsman of Lufthansa Cargo since its inception in January 1995. He was born in India, studied Chemistry at the University of Mumbai, and started his
professional career at Airline Financial Services in India. In 1999, he joined the former SwissCargo, where he held various positions in revenue management, transport management, and global area
management. From 2015 until 2021, he headed the cargo business segment at Swiss International Air Lines, which he and his team managed, developing it into a top-quality brand, internationally.
Two years ago, he moved from Zurich to Frankfurt, becoming Chief Commercial Officer of Lufthansa Cargo.
More international
In addition to his professional knowledge and management skills, his appointment could also be an indication that the Lufthansa Group is becoming more international in filling management
positions, following the examples of United Cargo (Jan Krems, Head of Cargo, Dutch) or Air France-KLM (Benjamin Smith, CEO, Canadian). At this hour, it is still unclear who will succeed Bhat in
the CCO position. However, observers expect that a female candidate will be nominated, as gender equality has also become a greater priority at Lufthansa.
More diverse
Bhat will assume his future position on 15APR23, subject to confirmation by Lufthansa Cargo's Supervisory Board, which should be a mere formality. In his new role, he will retain responsibility
for Product and Sales. Dietmar Focke is responsible for Operations and Human Resources. However, the duo is to become a trio again in due time, the airline confirms.
Michael Niggemann, Member of the Executive Board of Deutsche Lufthansa AG and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Lufthansa Cargo, commented Mr. Bhat’s appointment with these words: “I am
very pleased that Ashwin Bhat, a very skilled manager and internationally experienced logistics and cargo expert, is taking on this responsible task. As a member of the Executive Board, he has
played a key role in achieving Lufthansa Cargo's most successful years so far. As CEO, he will further develop the company and expand its strong market positioning.”
cargo.one and Lufthansa Cargo move closer
Just a few days ago, Lufthansa Cargo and online booking portal cargo.one tightened their strategic partnership by adding additional markets to the electronic booking services. In doing so, they
are reacting to forwarding agents’ wishes for real-time and fast information on the available capacity offered by various carriers on a given route, along with the relevant transport rates.
cargo.one prides itself on easy navigation as well as optimized search and booking functions for standard commodity shipments of up to ten tons, enabling customers hassle-free booking of their
goods.
Lufthansa Cargo’s website continues to be available to customers in full as a central information and booking platform for the entire product range flown by the carrier, thus complementing
cargo.one’s digital booking options. The airline is a shareholder of cargo.one. Officially, Lufthansa Cargo does not provide any information about the size of its financial engagement. Rumor has
it that it is between 15% and 20%.
Heiner Siegmund
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