Iata is 'run for the few, by the few': Qatar Airways CEO

Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker has blasted airline industry body Iata for lack of transparency in voting and frugal spending of millions of dollars at its Annual General Meeting in Singapore.

Al Baker told the audience that the airline industry body appears to be “run for the few, by the few” and lacking full transparency.

He also questioned the auditing process for Iata’s 2010 financial statement, and later questioned the “surprise” nomination of the Chief Executive Officer of a regional airline to fill the extra seat created to broaden the representation of carriers from the Middle East on Iata’s board. “We believe such issues should not be surprises.
Firstly, such decisions should be transparent and secondly, if geographical representation is the basis of the composition of the board, the regional airlines involved should be informed in advance of their regional allotments so that they can coordinate who should represent them.”

Al Baker highlighted some of Iata’s expenditure, including $18 million on travel, $58 million on data processing and IT and $29 million on outsourcing and consultancy. He called on Iata to justify “such large sums spent on travel” and the processes by which consultant and outsourcing contracts were awarded.

Al Baker backed a motion for Iata to reconsider the appointment of its auditors, having been unconvinced about the industry body’s financial accounts and auditing process.

International Airlines Group, the holding company of British Airways, also sought clarity on the entire voting process of board members.

The debates created an unusual level of tension during the normally carefully orchestrated morning sessions of Iata AGMs.

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