Qatar Airways abruptly replaces CEO, appoints ex-Doha Airport CCO

Qatar Airways has announced a sudden transition at the helm of the company, with Hamad Ali Al‑Khater, an ex-C-level executive at Doha Hamad International Airport (DOH), replacing Badr Mohammed Al‑Meer, who had served as the group’s chief executive since November 2023.

On December 7, 2025, Qatar Airways abruptly announced that Al-Meer, who had replaced the airline’s outspoken and long-tenured former chief executive, Akbar Al Baker, in November 2023, would be replaced by Al‑Khater, who will, effective immediately, take over as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Qatar Airways.

In a statement, the Qatari carrier noted that Al-Khater had served as the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of DOH, where he “was responsible for ensuring the safety and reliability of airport operations, while leading its strategic direction, operational excellence, infrastructure expansion, and the continuous enhancement of passenger experience.”

Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, the Chairman of Qatar Airways, expressed his gratitude to Al-Meer for his two years of service, with the airline now welcoming Al-Khater to continue building on the “strong foundations and expansive global network of Qatar Airways, anchored by our exceptional team in Qatar and around the world.”

“With this leadership transition, Qatar Airways Group reaffirms its commitment to delivering world-class experiences, reliability, and innovation to travellers around the globe.”

It was not immediately clear why Qatar Airways Group had made the decision to replace Al-Meer. After all, in May, the Qatari carrier unveiled its “strongest financial results in its history,” with the group’s profit for FY24/25 being $2.15 billion as revenues rose to QAR86 billion ($23.6 billion).

As highlighted by the group, some of the key achievements during the year were 25% minority stakes in Airlink and Virgin Australia, which has since launched flights from Australia to DOH using Qatar Airways’ aircraft, the installation of Starlink on its entire Boeing 777 fleet, and others.

“Our best year commercially in the airline’s history was 2024, and we fully expect demand in 2025 to remain as strong,” Al Meer said at the time, adding that Q4 2024 had one of the highest load factors ever.

Since the financial results’ announcement, Qatar Airways has also launched its codeshare agreement with Philippine Airlines, with the latter beginning flights from DOH to Manila Ninoy Aquino International Airport (MNL), and signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Kenya Airways.

The airline also unveiled that it would operate from New York John F. Kennedy International Airport’s (JFK) New Terminal One, including the opening of its first-ever lounge in the United States, from 2026.

Al-Meer himself replaced Al Baker, who had been the CEO of Qatar Airways for 27 years, in November 2023. When the airline announced the leadership transition in October 2023, it did not say much, only pointing out Al Baker’s legacy, including the fact that Qatar Airways “has grown to become one of the most recognisable and trusted brands globally, synonymous with customer service quality and the highest of standards.”