I GREW up with aircraft. My father worked with Sir Sidney Camm on the design of the Hawker Hurricane, the first fighter monoplane to join the Royal Air Force in 1937. He also worked on the original Hawker Typhoon and the Fairey Delta 2, which took the world air speed record in level flight at 1132 miles per hour in 1956. He later worked on the renowned Hawker Harrier jump jet, which was retired by the RAF only last year. I used to go to all the air shows with my father, to Farnborough, Paris and others, and we talked a lot about aircraft, both military and civil. I also visited the US and Canada with him and my mother, and we visited the various Hawker airfields and factories, including Dunsfold in Surrey. There used to be an annual air show there, and still is, and this is where they now film ‘Top Gear'. I remember being allowed to sit in the cockpit of a Hurricane in one of the hangers there. It was also fascinating listening to the test pilots, as you can imagine!” Lickley said. “However, I was never as clever as my father was, so I didn't study aircraft design or engineering!” Lickley first joined bmi in 1981 but in 1998, he opted for a career change. He then rejoined the company 2008, shortly after bmi established a connection with Saudi Arabia. “British Airways stopped flying to Saudi Arabia in March 2005. The airlinewas then persuaded to commence operations as the only British carrier to serve the Kingdom. We started in September 2005 with Riyadh to Heathrow, followed by Jeddah, and most recently, Dammam. It is still the only British carrier serving all three of these international gateways. We now have six flights a week from Riyadh, and three each a week out of Jeddah and Dammam, with all flights using the wide bodied Airbus A330,” he remarked. In 2009, Lufthansa bought majority shares in bmi, a move that has been a beneficial one for their customers according to Lickley. “The route to London is the busiest from the Kingdom and that compliments the Lufthansa network which spans the world. The bmi and Lufthansa fares are combinable and there will be further benefits for our customers to come.” He has dual roles with these two branches of what is effectively the same airline: “In Saudi Arabia, we are totally integrated. I am the Country Manager for bmi and as such, I am responsible for reaching our commercial targets, working with the travel trade and our corporate customers. I also liaise with the community on bmi issues. As Head of Sales for Lufthansa and bmi, I am responsible for achieving the total joint business in the Kingdom by working closely with our whole team. There is a lot of travel involved with my work within the Kingdom, between the three cities, as well as to the UK and Europe,” he explained. With regard to top management jobs in airlines, Lickley feels that it is important to have aviation experience to work effectively: “If you don't have aviation experience, you can't understand some of the unique issues we face. It is a dynamic industry which can be very difficult to manage to obtain the best result. The high investment cost in aircraft and the ongoing engineering costs, balanced by the highly competitive market driving down air fares requires very astute management abilities to make a profit, particularly during difficult economic times. This is not helped either by ash clouds and snow storms which are completely out of an airline's control,” he added. He went on to talk about the recent bad weather in December which affected airports all over Europe: “Heathrow was closed to flights for two days at a very busy time, but we managed to get all our customers re-booked and away. Lufthansa operations were also affected, but between us we managed to accommodate all our customers to be with their families.” Working with an enthusiastic team in a competitive environment, Lickley says that he enjoys his job. He also mentioned the downsides – which are common to many professionals: “I don't enjoy the traveling between meetings in the heavy traffic! There is also too much administration and I prefer to be with our customers and the team.” Before coming to Saudi Arabia, Lickley had worked in Southern Spain for ten years, both in and out of the aviation industry. When he first came to Saudi Arabia, he found the working environment surprisingly similar to that which he had encountered in Spain. “There is a big Arabic influence in Southern Spain. Family is very important; then there is the ‘siesta' tradition where the shops close in the afternoon; people also eat very late in the evening and spend a lot of time talking together,” he said. “There is a great air of confidence and well-being, the weather is good – and the driving is interesting! Both countries share these features. So although I knew very little about Saudi Arabia before I came here, there were very few surprises when I arrived. My impressions haven't really changed over the two years that I have been here. I live in Riyadh, which I enjoy, and there is always a lot going on so I don't spend much time at home.”
