Abu Dhabi Airports appoints new acting CEO

Abu Dhabi Airports has appointed Shareef Hashim Al Hashmi as acting CEO, it was announced on Tuesday.

He replaces Bryan Thompson, who was appointed as CEO of Abu Dhabi Airports in August 2018.

Al Hashmi, who previously served as the chief defence strategic programmes officer and chief information security officer of the Tawazun Economic Council, also worked with the Supreme Council for National Security, Outlook Energy Investment, Presidential Flight and Royal Jet.

Al Hashmi’s appointment comes even as the UAE has suspended all inbound and outgoing flights in the country to curb the spread of Covid-19.

Abu Dhabi International Airport announced last week that it was temporarily closing Terminal 2 and migrating all existing flights to Terminal 1.

Read: Etihad to board only Emiratis and diplomats from foreign airports bound for Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi Airports has been looking to expand and is soon preparing to open its much delayed Dhs10bn Midfield Terminal Complex.

Spanning 742,000 square metres, the terminal will be able to handle more than 8,500 people per hour and will increase the airport’s capacity to 45 million passengers a year.

The terminal, which will be one of the region’s largest, will also have a baggage handling system that can process almost half a million bags a day.

It will also have 5G public wifi – making it the first “5G connected hub” in the region – as well as services such as autonomous wheelchairs.

Read: Abu Dhabi Airports, Etihad launch trial of autonomous wheelchairs