Ashwin Bhat is set to be appointed as the new CEO of Lufthansa Cargo, pending subject to the pending resolution by the Supervisory Board.
The New CEO
Lufthansa Cargo announced the appointment of their new head in a press release issued on Friday, 31 March.
Bhat is due to start in his new position on 15 April 2023. He is currently acting as the Member of the Executive Board and Chief Commercial Officer.
It was announced that, in his new role, he will continue to be responsible for product and sales.
Speaking of the new appointment, Dr. Michael Niggemann, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Lufthansa Cargo, said: “I am very pleased that Ashwin Bhat, a very skilled manager and internationally experienced logistics and cargo expert, is taking on this responsible task.“
Bhat will take over the role from Dorothea von Boxberg, who moved within the Lufthansa Group to become the head of Brussels Airlines.
The new CEO Began his professional career as Cargo and Mail Revenue Accounting Manager at Airline Financial Support Services (India) in 1992. He entered the Lufthansa Group via roles he held in Swiss WorldCargo.
The Lufthansa Group purchased a minority stake in the airline in 2005 and gradually integrated the SWISS operations into the group by the late 2000s.
Bhat was the head of the Cargo division at Swiss International Air Lines from 2015 to February 2021.
“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,” Dr. Niggemann added.
The company stated it intended to continue with a three-person board, so the recruitment for Bhat’s replacement is ongoing.
It was also stated that there would be a “new distribution of responsibilities” within the board which will likely result in some organizational changes.
Digital Presence
Lufthansa Cargo also recently revealed they had upgraded their relationship into a strategic partnership with cargo.one.
cargo.one is an online cargo booking platform that has been on the market for five years. Its operation is based on algorithms to enable customers to find the best offers for cargo transportation.
Lufthansa Cargo’s expansion of cooperation with the company will see the company add the ability to book to a further 59 countries worldwide, to a total of 75.
Bhat, in his role as Chief Commercial Officer, said: “Our customers value digital services that help them be utmost efficient… We are pleased to now offer the cargo.one channel to more than 90 percent of our customers.”
“The ambition of cargo.one to have maximum offer quality and confirmed bookings, providing maximum ease of use is paying off in an improved customer experience.”
The digital developments and management changes appear driven to cement the company’s position as a global air cargo leader.
While the global air cargo market demand remains weaker, strong market positions may make the difference.
