Airbus has established a new venture in Dubai to oversee its commercial activities in countries covered by the Gulf Co-operation Council countries plus Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Maldives, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Syria and Yemen, as well as Gaza and the West Bank. The business will include contracts, customer relations, marketing and sales, and customer service activity such as spare parts, technical support and training. Work is already under way on a related spares center that is expected to open in April next year.
Habib Fekih, formerly head of Airbus sales and business development and previously its sales vice president for Northern Africa, Middle East and Western Asia, is named president of the business, which is to be known as Airbus Middle East. Fekih has most recently been chief executive of Total Airline Services, a 100-percent Airbus subsidiary based in Dubai, which provides consultancy, cabin interior and used spares servic