Strategic Thought Transformation - The IIPM Think Tank

R U P E R T B R A Y; C A T H A Y PACIFIC
Sky is the limit...
...for Rupert Bray, Country Manager India, Nepal, Bangladesh & Bhutan!
What started off as an airline
with just a single plane 60-
years ago, today has almost
100 aircraft in its fleet. Cathay Pacific
has clearly recognised India as its most
important market outside its home market
China, and is focused on expansion
here. The Hong Kong-based airline is almost
doubling the cargo capacity out of
India with direct flights to Mumbai and
Chennai. On June 2, 2006, the airlines
started a twice weekly turnaround service
between Mumbai and Hong Kong.
The man behind the hustle bustle of
expansion plans in the Indian subcontinent
is Rupert Bray, the Country Manager
of Cathay Pacific for India, Nepal
and Bangladesh.
Bray is no stranger to the subcontinent,
as six of the last seven generations
of the Bray family were born in
India. Rupert himself was born in England
and educated at Wellington College
and Bristol University. He joined
Cathay Pacific in 1995 and has since
worked in India and Indonesia apart
from HongKong where he was, the Executive
Assistant to Chief Operating
Officer. After his stint as the Manager
CATHAY PACIFIC IN INDIA
Cabin Crew relations in the in-flight
services department, Bray came back
to India in 2004 as Country Manager.
Bray married Mi Hyun, a Cathay Pacific
crew member, who was also its cutout
girl from 1999 to 2000. Bray and
Hyun (now a homemaker) have a twoyear-old
daughter Annabel and a three
-month-old son Jamie. Bray admits to
This is a very
exciting time to be
running Cathay
Pacific in India
being in love with India and whenever
time permits he likes to take off on a
tour to explore different parts of the
country along with his wife. Amateur
writer, amateur sailor, Bray plays his
different roles with aplomb and is currently
focused on his vision of linking
Cathay Pacific Airways is based in Hong Kong and offers passenger and cargo
services in over 35 countries and to 92 destinations. The airline started its services
in India in 1953 with a flight from Hong Kong to Calcutta via Bangkok. At that time
its head office was in Calcutta. It shifted base to Mumbai in 1976. Today it has over
15 offices in India. It operates passenger flights from Delhi as well as Mumbai, and
has a strong freighter network with three flights each to Mumbai and Delhi. Cathay
Pacific cargo is where the company is intending to focus its growth in India. Cathay
Pacific Cargo has a network of 28 destinations around the world and carries more
than 60,000 tonnes of cargo per month. The passenger aircrafts are also used for
carrying cargo in its cargo space.
India and China in the best possible
way through the air route besides expanding
cargo. Bray says, “This is a
very exciting time to be running Cathay
Pacific in India. The opening up of the
Indian skies presents airlines and the
travel community with remarkable opportunities
as well as significant challenges.
India is an important passenger
and cargo market for Cathay Pacific.
It is Cathay Pacific’s intention to continue
to seek ways of expanding our
coverage. Within my tenure, I hope to
provide the Indian travelling public a
greater opportunity to experience the
Cathay Pacific service and delights of
our home, Hong Kong.” Cathay has
that rare distinction of being profitable
in spite of the ever increasing
fuel prices and the consequent recession
in the airlines industry. “Cathay
is a very unique airline as it is one of
the really genuine private airlines and
receives no backing from the government.
That has made us a very versatile
and resilient airline, particularly during
times like SARS and 9/11,” says Bray.
At present the company is big on cargo
in India. It is one of the world’s top 10
air cargo carriers, which accounts for
around 30% of its total revenues. Last
year Cathay announced a 233% increase
in cargo capacity to and from India.
Currently it operates passenger flights
to Delhi and Mumbai in India. “We are
very keen to start some flights in various
parts of India, but that’s subject to
government approval,” says Bray.
Though infrastructure still remains
the biggest challenge for airlines, Bray
is still confident that he is at the right
place at the right time and Cathay will
continue to grow along with the airlines
industry in India...
An IIPM Intelligence Unit Publication STRATEGIC INNOVATORS
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