In My Perspective
In My Perspective
A couple of weeks ago, I received a wonderful surprise while attending the Eighth Annual Airline Leaders Forum in the beautiful city of Rio de Janeiro. Being called to the stage by my good friend Roberto Kriete to accept a special recognition from ALTA left me quite speechless initially, however I found my words quickly because it was important for me to accept this award on behalf of the Airbus Latin America team.
It is true that given my role I have been a constant and public face for Airbus in our region for many years. It has taken us nearly 30 years to go from having a dozen planes flying throughout the region in the early 1980s to more than 400 in operation today. Much of this has been possible thanks to the professionalism, dedication and enthusiasm of a special group of people who have made every aircraft sale and delivery a reality. Many of them are still with us at Airbus and in my team, while others have moved on to other endeavors, but without a doubt each of them can enjoy the fact they were important contributors to putting Airbus on the map in our dear region.
I would like to dedicate this award to my teams in Miami and Toulouse, to all those still making a difference in our industry day in and day out and to those that preceded us by paving the way for us to learn from their dedication and values.
On behalf of the Airbus team, I congratulate and thank my friends at ALTA, especially Roberto Kriete, ALTA President and Avianca Taca Chairman, and Alex de Gunten, ALTA Director General, not just for being great people to work with, but for also being great friends and continuously contributing to the development of aviation in Latin America, a region that is constantly setting the example globally for getting things done right.
With more than 30 years in the aviation industry, Rafael Alonso is the Executive Vice President of Airbus Customer Affairs for the Latin America and the Caribbean region, responsible for all Airbus commercial activities and customer relations in more than 40 countries.