TIACA Appoints Airport Development Executive Mammen Tharakan as New Chief

The International Air Cargo Association (TIACA) has appointed Mammen Tharakan as its new chief executive, drawing on his expertise in large-scale airport infrastructure development to lead the global air cargo industry body. According to FreightWaves, Tharakan is departing his current role supporting the development of a second international airport in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia — a flagship project within the Kingdom's broader Vision 2030 infrastructure agenda — to take the helm at TIACA. The appointment signals TIACA's intent to leverage deep operational and infrastructure knowledge at the leadership level, as the air cargo sector navigates a period of significant capacity investment, evolving trade flows, and growing demand for supply chain resilience. Airport development experience is increasingly relevant to air freight stakeholders, given that cargo handling infrastructure, ground logistics integration, and airside capacity constraints remain central challenges for the industry. Tharakan's background in one of the world's most capital-intensive aviation development markets positions him to engage with TIACA's membership — which spans airlines, freight forwarders, ground handlers, and airport operators — on infrastructure and capacity issues that directly affect air cargo throughput and efficiency. TIACA serves as a principal advocate for the global air cargo industry, representing stakeholder interests before regulators, international bodies, and policymakers. The association plays a key role in shaping standards, promoting best practices, and facilitating dialogue across the air freight supply chain. While air cargo sits adjacent to the core maritime freight sector, the two industries are deeply interconnected through multimodal logistics networks, and leadership changes at major freight associations are closely watched by supply chain professionals across both sectors. Further details on Tharakan's start date and strategic priorities for TIACA were not immediately available at the time of publication.