Benhamouda’s Priorities to Solve Air Algerie’s Problems

The new general manager of Air Algerie, Hamza Benhamouda, has been holding a series of continuous meetings with the directors of various departments, since his appointment at the helm of the institution, to determine the work plan for the next stage.

Benhmouda’s urgent road map includes giving great importance to the technical aspect of the company’s activity, improving the level of aircraft maintenance, reducing flight delays, and clearing the compensation file for all customers affected during the COVID-19 period, which amounts to about 500.000 tickets that are stuck, due to a defect in the payment system of the customer supervising the digital operations, in addition to reviewing recruitment methods and making them clearer and more transparent.

Air Algerie announced, on Sunday, the search for a new director of human resources to succeed its former official, Dabbab Noureddine, whose duties were ended by Benhamouda a few days ago and transferred to the acting director Karimiche Abdelkarime, who previously held the same position.

Air Algerie resorted to this method in selecting the new director to avoid what was raised about the employment file in the national company, because it was usually done previously with favouritism, mediation and ambiguity, which disrupted the performance of Air Algerie during the last period and deprived it of hiring competencies capable of promoting and advancing the institution to the desired level.

Sources following the file wonder about the source of the rumours that have been circulating about the company recently, which are mere lies and fabrications, at a time when it is seeking today to redraw its work plan with new leadership and a different vision, avoiding the mistakes of the past, and working to confront the challenges ahead, with a precise work program, to make the national company ready for the competition imposed by the market, in terms of offers and services.

Data also indicate numerous attacks targeting the new management after the changes recently made by the Director General, Hamza Benhamouda, which began with changing the Director of Human Resources.

The new official of Air Algerie aims, through the changes, to inject new blood into the company, and to adopt a different policy that ends abuses, prevents favouritism, and opens the door to accountability to everyone instead of neglecting corruption.

The recent changes also affected several sensitive department officials, such as the Secretary-General, Ait Abdelmalek Sofiane, the Commercial Director, Amiar Liacine, the Director of Operations and Exploitation, Allali Mohamed Ali, and the Director of Communications and Official Spokesman, Amine Andaloussi.

In this regard, the CEO of Air Algerie, Hamza Benhamouda, since assuming responsibility and officially assuming his duties, has received attacks and fabrications from parties within the institution, according to documented data, dealing with utilitarian promotion platforms that were feeding on chaos and corruption in this company.

It is very clear that those parties that targeted the CEO in a record time after he assumed responsibility have special and narrow purposes that have nothing to do with the company’s general interests, as it is not logical according to the management rules to direct all the arrows that we monitor here and there to an official who has only been appointed to his duties for a month and a half, and who inherited major accumulations from previous administrations, including that many aircraft are currently undergoing maintenance, as his primary concern, since his arrival last February, was to review the technical status of the aircraft, to achieve the best level of passenger safety and security by reviewing the maintenance department.

Benhamouda also appointed Mouloud Hachlaf as head of the maintenance department, who had served as a commercial representative of Air Algerie in London and then as an advisor to the general director before being appointed head of the maintenance department. He also initiated a meeting with the syndicates of the maintenance department, which led to a significant reduction in flight delays.

In the same context, the new CEO inherited a heavy legacy that successive administrations did not resolve, namely uncompensated or refunded tickets as a result of a defect in the payment system during the Covid-19 period, which caused tens of thousands of tickets to remain without compensation, and created great dissatisfaction among customers, as Benhamouda sought to gradually resolve these accumulations, while the latter urgently ordered the settlement of the compensation file as soon as possible and as quickly as possible. He also held several meetings to resolve this outstanding situation.