The abrupt and inexplicable departure of Akbar Al Baker from Qatar Airways!
- Prashant Kavi (PK)
- Aug 27, 2024
- 13 min read
Updated: Feb 26
Prologue
In August of 2023 as I had started working towards formally setting up AVIATHÈQUE and working on the content, my launch article was to have been titled:
Is it the end of the road for Akbar Al Baker ?
Now this rhetorical question wasn’t meant to be clickbait or based on a mere hunch, but upon a careful appraisal of various news reports, talking to a cross section of industry and airline insiders, apart from observing developments with Qatar Airways over the last few years, from up close. So admittedly a bit of an informed premonition, if there is one! And if only I had my launch timing right, then what a scoop this would have been, for news arrived on 23rd October 2023 that Akbar Al Baker would be stepping down as Chief Executive of Qatar Airways Group, effective 5th November 2023, with no plausible reason offered for this sudden change of guard. This in turn led to intense media speculation, with most media outlets questioning the suddenness of the move and calling it a ‘surprise development’. Because publicly, there was nothing at all to suggest that such a development was forthcoming. And above all, Qatar Airways had successfully navigated multiple crisis one after the other viz. the 'Qatar blockade' and the COVID pandemic, without losing its top billing; besides doing a great job during the FIFA World Cup hosted in Doha. All under the stewardship of Akbar Al Baker.
Akbar Al Baker was and remains a fascinating subject of study in the Airline industry and from the first time I met him, a fleeting introduction (read: a perfunctory nod of acknowledgement of my presence) at an industry event many years ago, I have been intrigued like many, to better understand the phenomenon he had become in his nearly three-decades at the helm of the airline, he helped re-launch and shape into a tour de force!
‘His Excellency’
In a seminal moment in the 2008 Ridley Scott directed American spy thriller ‘Body of Lies’, Ed Hoffman the character of Russell Crowe, playing a CIA division Chief, tries to bear down upon Mark Strong’s character, portraying the Jordanian intelligence chief and subtly threatens to have him do his bidding or else he will have ‘the President of the United States call the King of Jordan’ (into supposed submission). In contrast with the unkempt and overbearing screen figure of Crowe, the sharply dressed and unflappable Mark Strong pithily responds, “in matters of intelligence Ed, you are .. speaking to the King”!
Juxtaposed in the context of Qatari Aviation, Akbar Al Baker could very well have been likened to the Emir of the Aviation landscape in the tiny Gulf state, given the size of his executive portfolio at the time of his departure, where he commanded every big state entity alongside Qatar’s most visible global symbol - Qatar Airways. And to amplify the mystique, there was the prefix of ‘His Excellency’, added not so long ago to the title of Qatar Airways’ Group Chief Executive Officer – some would say an audacious move, unprecedented for Aviation industry czars! But his departure from the top, when it came, was far removed from the aura of invincibility created around his persona. Abrupt, inexplicable and totally devoid of ceremony for someone who had been synonymous with Qatar Airways’ phenomenal success. Even the official Press Note, announcing his departure was somewhat subdued and desultory, carrying just a few endearing words worthy of celebrating the man and his achievements, including perhaps the only notable mention of, “27-years of remarkable service..”!
Ironically while Akbar Al Baker was feted, awarded and recognized everywhere else including being awarded the Legion d'Honneur by France, there was never any formal state recognition back home.
But in the world of Gulf monarchies, every position, including the seat at the very top is just a revolving door offering a transient stab at unbridled power and influence to those savvy enough to stay in the game. Falling out of favor/power is inevitable and 'how long can one survive at the top', remains the only question for every incumbent. And so it was for Akbar Al Baker.
A quick word on Qatar for some context. Qatar is generally (and increasingly so) viewed with ambivalence around the world, as it routinely finds itself mired in a host of contradictions whilst seeming to play a prominent power broking role on the world stage, particularly in the Middle East. But it helps to have the 3rd largest gas reserves in the world apart from 13th largest Oil reserves, more in demand than at any time perhaps, in a conflict-ridden, energy-starved world, allowing it to punch well above its diminutive weight with some shrewd geopolitical maneuvering, greased by abundant petrodollars.
Qatar Airways and broadcaster Al Jazeera (of the ‘we are here to propagate democracy around the world except in our own backyard’ fame), fully owned and controlled by the state, are the most visible and potent symbols of Qatari soft power around the world besides serving a deep strategic purpose. And as Qatar’s influence on the world stage grew, so did the network of Qatar Airways, ergo the clout of Akbar Al Baker.
Perspective can be perplexing
In many ways Akbar Al Baker was possibly (alongside Ryanair's Michael O'Leary in a dead heat!) the most loathed, feared (mostly within his organization) and admired senior Aviation industry executive of this era, all at once! But even his most ardent supporters today would not have given him much of a chance when he was appointed to re-launch Qatar Airways back in 1997. With no real grounding in running or working for an airline barring nondescript stints with the Directorate of Civil Aviation and the National Tourism Council in Qatar, which he claims gave him enough understanding of the business to lead an airline. Perhaps, but then he was hand-picked by the then reigning Emir, to set a new course for Qatar Airways to become a world-class global airline to rival its rapidly-on-the-rise Middle Eastern neighbor. It also helped that besides the Emir’s personal diktat, there was a sizeable war chest at the disposal of the newly appointed Chief Executive. And by all available accounts, he got down to work with a messianic zeal, driven by personal ambition and loyalty, besides a fiercely competitive desire to outclass Qatar's more celebrated airline neighbor.
But this zeal was packaged in a highly aggressive, street smart work-culture and enough stories abound about the ‘high-handedness’ that Akbar Al Baker directly propagated. There are a lot of employees who’ve spoken out, mostly in anonymity, about the culture of fear that was driven straight from the top, which called for even the slightest of mistakes to be dealt with a disciplinary action or a memo at least. Much of the brunt was borne by the Cabin Crew who were routinely summoned to the HQ for a dressing down every time a passenger complained besides, not to mention the infamous 'can't get pregnant' horror stories that proliferate various Cabin Crew online forums. But even the Air Crew were not spared and some Pilot friends at Qatar Airways that I spoke to, testified to the high stress levels induced by a demanding operating environment with a zero-error-tolerance policy that doled out ‘be-mindful’ memos at the drop of a hat, besides giving rise to a poor work-life balance. But perspective from the other side argues, that it was precisely such rigorous policies that have sustained discipline in the ranks and allowed Qatar Airways to compete and flourish with impeccable Customer Service levels and an enviable safety record, enroute to becoming a world-class airline.
Mark of a Man
The spotlight chased Akbar Al Bakar and this stemmed primarily from his reputation as being outspoken and blunt (perhaps cultivated by design), besides being ever eager to deliver a newsworthy soundbite. Although, this shooting from the hip very often led to bizarre and controversial statements.
Like the most notorious of them all, on the sidelines of the IATA Annual Conference in Sydney in 2018, where he infamously responded to a question about the possibility of a woman leading Qatar Airways, saying, “[Qatar Airways] had to be led by a man, because it is a very challenging position” thereby suggesting that a woman may be incapable of taking on that challenge. Seated next to him and making light of that blatantly sexist remark immediately thereafter, was Qantas CEO Alan Joyce, openly gay and an LGBTI activist! For the uninformed, homosexuality is punishable by death under Qatari law. And this was on the heels of another cringeworthy gem the previous year where he stated at an event in Dublin, Ireland, words to the effect that, “US airlines were crap and their passengers were always being served by grandmothers"! That he offered ‘heartfelt’ apologies and made conciliatory statements afterwards, did not endear him to anyone yet boosted his notoriety (read: visibility) manifold.
Although Akbar Al Baker also displayed a shrewd knack for making highly nuanced statements to play to the domestic gallery when the moment required. And there were many including the time when Qatar’s neighboring Gulf states, enforced a land-air-sea blockade in 2017. Akbar Al Baker took it upon himself to moonlight as the Ambassador-at-large for "my beloved country", berating the neighbors and defending Qatar against an ‘illegal action’ while not failing to cite the contribution of Qatar Airways. These ‘patriotic’ qualities again came to the fore, when he hit back at critics who condemned the country's use of low-paid migrant workers to build stadiums for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, and its stance on LGBTQ+ rights. Sample the response as reported by the Associated Press:
“We always rub salt into the wound of our competitor, and of course, our adversaries, as you can see the measure of the negative media campaign against my beloved country Qatar. Because people cannot accept that a small country like the state of Qatar has won the world’s largest sporting event. Congratulations to Qatar, my beloved country.”
But perhaps the most frequent to get the short end of Akbar Al Baker’s stick, were the two large commercial aircraft manufacturers or OEMs viz., Airbus and Boeing. Torn between signing big ticket deals with an ascendant Qatar Airways and suffering public humiliation of his occasional rants against them was par for the course and something their leadership learnt to live with. No other Airline Executive has ever been so openly, vociferously and harshly critical of the two OEMs as was Akbar Al Baker. But at least he ensured both OEMs were equally harangued!
At the sidelines of the Paris Air Show in 2009, this is what he had to say to Boeing in a veiled threat to cancel a 60-aircraft 787 Dreamliner order over inordinate delays:
"Boeing is run by bean counters and lawyers. We have some serious issues with them, and if they do not play ball with us they will be in for a serious surprise.”
As for Airbus, the tone was no less scathing when he spoke during a Press Conference at the 2011 Dubai Air Show:
"As far as Airbus is concerned, we have reached an impasse with them. We thought we would conclude an agreement and make an announcement today. Unfortunately, I feel that Airbus is still learning how to make airplanes."
And while this behavior did endear him to a small section of the industry for standing up to the proverbial Goliaths, he also shrewdly used this strategy to exercise control over the manufacturers and play one against the other to wrangle better deals at both ends!
All of this offers a riveting insight into the persona of the man, most likely conditioned by survival instincts of operating in unforgiving terrain. Although, I am tempted to bring in his India connection here too, given that Akbar Al Baker spent much of his academic life in India including attending the Sydenham College of Economics & Commerce in that great seductress of a city – Mumbai, studying for his undergraduate degree. In the Indian context, Mumbai as a city is renowned to breed street smart chutzpah in its inhabitants and possibly that trait suitably rubbed off on a young and impressionable Al Baker!
Turbulence
But Akbar Al Baker possibly overplayed his hand during his famous skirmish with Airbus on the A350 paint peel-off issue.
Context first: in the highly duopolistic world of large aircraft manufacturing, no airline, however big and powerful can afford to lock horns with either (Boeing or Airbus) beyond a certain threshold, else they run the risk of becoming beholden to one by abandoning the other; thereby being at a distinct disadvantage that comes out of the proverbial, putting all eggs in one basket scenario.
Besides, it is no secret that nations with large state-owned carriers particularly, use high value/visibility airplane purchases as an underlying means of driving
foreign policy in the hope of deriving strategic depth with two large important trading blocs that these manufacturers represent viz., the US and EU. And even though these are predominantly independently run commercial enterprises, the respective governments go all out to support these OEMs at many levels given their economic and symbolic impact.
Overconfident and smug in his grip over the OEMs, Akbar Al Baker severely miscalculated his moves when he locked horns with Airbus in 2021, by having a newly acquired fleet of A350s grounded and refusing to accept future deliveries of the same type besides demanding monetary compensation. The issue involved a degradation of the fuselage surface below the top coat of paint, leading to peeling and cracking of the paint and exposure of the sub-layer of copper mesh underneath, designed to absorb lightning. The Qatari Civil Aviation Authority declared it as an airworthiness issue with probable impact on safety, which resulted in Qatar Airways grounding its then dozen odd fleet of A350s in August 2021.
It was alleged that the regulator was forced into doing so by the airline itself, which had by now gotten into a full-blown fight with Airbus over the issue. It was also insinuated by the plane maker thereafter and strongly so, that the airline had seized on this crisis to turn it into an opportunity for parking excess capacity in the aftermath of the COVID pandemic and attempting to economically benefit from the situation!
This was after Airbus declared the issue to be ‘superficial/cosmetic’ following an internal investigation with no impact on safety, a claim that was endorsed by the European regulator - EASA. Yet, Qatar Airways stood its ground and dug its heels further leading to an unprecedented chain of events that saw a pitched legal battle play out in the courts and a very public blame game (orchestrated by Qatar Airways predominantly). To exacerbate matters, Airbus took the extraordinary step of cancelling a separate Qatar Airways order for 50 A321NEOs, by invoking a legal right to do so. Never before in the history of commercial aviation perhaps, had such an acrimonious spat played out between an OEM and an Airline customer and it is said that Akbar Al Baker, forever used to having his way with the OEMs, was caught by complete surprise at this development. At this time, even the respective governments got involved in order to diffuse the situation which was becoming ugly and costly for the warring sides and there followed hectic behind the scenes parleys to reach a settlement. Meanwhile a querulous Al Baker flew straight into the arms of Boeing like a jilted lover and signed up an order for 25 737 Max jets, ostensibly to show Airbus ‘who called the shots'!
The Qatari-French Bonhomie
For a state like Qatar, that likes to be seen perpetually shining, their airline’s spat with Airbus was an inexcusable blip and by all accounts the blame lay at the doorstep of Akbar Al Baker for letting it get out-of-hand. But more importantly, the spat undermined the longstanding and carefully constructed relationship between Qatar and France leading to terribly bad optics. The two countries have been cozying up for quite some time now; an increasingly symbiotic relationship underpinned by large Qatari investments in diverse sectors in France and France's own involvement in critical sectors in Qatar such as Energy and Defence.
Having indulged Akbar Al Baker all this while, the French were now reportedly livid at Akbar Al Baker’s shenanigans and this was communicated quite forcefully to the Amiri Diwan office in Doha. In no mood to relent, the French were baying for blood and Al Baker was singularly in the dock for allowing the spat to fester for so long and become so public. And while under the guidance of the political leadership, both sides came to the table and settled in what was called an ‘amicable settlement’. For Akbar Al Baker’s future though, it seems the damage was done and the die was cast. Thereafter, not even the successful conclusion of the FIFA World Cup in Qatar and the sterling contribution of Qatar Airways to the event could provide enough grist for the mill for Al Baker’s cause. At the Paris airshow in June 2023, journalists couldn’t help but observe a visibly subdued Akbar Al Baker, a pale shadow of his usual self-aggrandizing self, chastised perhaps on account of the Airbus spat and having had to uncharacteristically ‘settle’ thereby ceding ground to an OEM, which was complete anathema to the man.
Ironic then that the country that feted him twice, first as a 'Chevalier, Legion d’Honneur in 2002 and then upgraded with a ‘Officier de la Legion d’Honneur' in 2015 (easy to comprehend when you consider the fact that Qatar Airways remains the only airline in the world to have flown every Airbus aircraft type!), wanted him out.
Events were now fast conspiring against Al Baker and as a prelude, he was first made to relinquish his role as the Head of Qatar Tourism on 22nd October 2023. The signs were clear, that the ‘beloved country’ had fallen out of love with its famous son!
Epilogue
Sometimes there's a man... I won't say a hero, 'cause, what's a hero? But sometimes, there's a man. And I'm talkin' about the Dude here. Sometimes, there's a man, well, he's the man for his time and place. He fits right in there.
-The Stranger, The Big Lebowski (1998)
Qatar Airways, like many other flag carriers, has benefitted from billions of dollars in subsidies and handouts from its owners, the Qatari state and therefore it might follow that setting up the airline and building it to the level of its peers would have been relatively easy for any incumbent. But given the nature of the airline business it would not have been easy for someone to pull off and achieve what Akbar al Baker did with consistency, if not grace! And much as he would have hoped to self-script a fairy tale finale to his tenure, he can perhaps derive solace from the fact that having been plucked out of obscurity, he leaves behind an enduring legacy of having built a world class airline from scratch, which will remain synonymous with his name for a long time to come.
Although therein also lies a risk of it all coming apart, because a singular, larger than life personality is so embedded in the DNA of the airline and how it’s always been run, that it might be difficult for the successors to unravel the strands and make it work in any other way of their choosing.
Whatever be the outcome though, ‘His Excellency’ was clearly a man for his time and place!
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