 Mammen Tharakan steps in as TIACA’s next Director General on August 1, 2026, succeeding Glyn Hughes, and as a structured change with everybody onboard to insure it go smoothly. The hope is this move will be too cool for school.
TIACA gets yet another DG with wide-ranging aviation experience and a strong partnership mindset to help that organization keep uniting the global air cargo community—and to push the industry forward on the things that matter the most.
Mammen can be described as a “man for all seasons” having spent
25 years in a career that has included airports, airlines, ground handling, ecommerce, route development, infrastructure, tourism, and even investment attraction.
He began with Air France-KLM, and then carried through later leadership roles, including at Edmonton International Airport and King Salman International Airport in Riyadh.
TIACA Chair Roos Bakker framed it in a way that’s spot on direct: the industry is evolving quickly, and that brings both opportunity and complexity.
She emphasized Tharakan’s leadership experience, his grasp of the global air cargo landscape, and his ability to build partnerships as essential to why he’s the right person for the next chapter.
 Which raises the obvious question: what does “next chapter” mean in practice?
The way TIACA talks about it, it’s about growing influence, delivering more value to members, and bringing the global cargo community closer together.
In other words, not just hosting events, but shaping the conversation and helping the industry act on shared priorities.
We wish him luck as do many others in our industry that hope TIACA continues across the wide spectrum of interests in logistics.
TIACA is the one organization that can pull every aspect of the logistics industry together and lead the way into the future.
That’s a tall order.
Arm’s length view of what’s been built already needs a salute, a group hug and a bit of a tweet-tweet to departing DG Glyn Hughes.
Glyn has been Director General since 2021, and TIACA is a clear winner as more visible and more active during his tenure.
Hughes, just after he put down his sword as IATA Head of Cargo—no cake walk job— came out of retirement and took on the TIACA post of DG and led the way to expanding membership, additional sustainability initiatives, new research, stronger engagement with members, and growth in major events like the Executive Summit and the Air Cargo Forum.
Next TIACA Air Cargo Forum, btw, takes place October 26-29 in the big Miami Convention Center,
We met Mammen Tharakan during his airport run and found him big-picture and very grounded.
He talks about air cargo as essential to global trade and economic development, but he also adds something we don’t always hear – that he firmly believes logistics biggest impact is human.
Mammen says cargo isn’t just freight, it’s what improves lives and livelihoods.
Out of the gate In 2026, this DG will reflect building collaboration across the value chain, by what he believes is an industry of passionate professionals.
More power to him.
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