Lickley, bmi country manager, Saudi Arabia has a strong aviation background starting from his father’s influence. His father used to work with Sir Sidney Camm on the design of the Hawker Hurricane — the first fighter monoplane to join the Royal Air Force in 1937, and also worked on the original Hawker Typhoon and the Fairey Delta 2. Lickley’s father also worked on the renowned Hawker Harrier jump jet.

With his father’s influence, Lickley was exposed to the world of aircraft and would visit all the air shows — to Farnborough, Paris and others. He also visited Hawker airfields and factories with his father.

Lickley first worked for bmi in 1981 till 1998. He left bmi for 10 years for a career change but rejoined the airline in 2008 (three years after bmi started flying Riyadh-London Heathrow).

With Lufthansa buying in to bmi in 2009, Lickley served dual role of country manager for bmi and head of sales for Lufthansa and bmi in the Kingdom. He is responsible for reaching commercial targets, works closely with travel trade and corporate customers as bmi’s country manager. As head of sales for Lufthansa and bmi, Lickley is responsible for achieving the total joint business in the Kingdom

Before his stint in Saudi Arabia, Lickley worked in Southern Spain for 10 years (in and out of aviation industry). Southern Spain is high on Arabic influence and has sort of prepared Lickley for his post in Saudi Arabia.

In a special interview with Arab News, Lickley shared details of the carrier’s efforts to stay ahead in the highly competitive aviation industry. 
 
The following are excerpts from an exclusive interview with Lickley:
 
Q. Tell us more about British Midland International
 
A. British Midland International (bmi) is the second largest airline at London Heathrow. In Saudi Arabia, we operate an Airbus A330 with two cabins onboard flying nonstop services to London-Heathrow from Riyadh (6 weekly), Jeddah (3 weekly) and Dammam (3 weekly).
 
Q. Why choose to be in Saudi Arabia?
 
A. Needless to say, the Kingdom is a very important market in the Middle East. Also, London happens to be one of the favorite European destinations among Saudi nationals and with our product and services, the British experience starts even before they go onboard.
 
Q. How do you reach out to the larger Saudi audience?
 
A. We bring bmi closer to them. Just recently, we launched our Arabic website, flybmi.com/ar where our customers can have the convenience of choosing and booking their flights from the comfort of their own homes or offices. We have made it simple with a user-friendly interface to encourage our customers to plan their travel itineraries online.
 
Q. How many destinations do bmi fly to?
 
A. bmi serves 32 destinations in the UK, Ireland, Middle East, CIS and Africa routes. And it gets even better if you think about Star Alliance, a truly global alliance, spanning across five continents.
 
Q. How different is your business class from others?
 
A. Our customers experience contemporary British service known internationally even onboard and on ground. We are proud to say that we have trained chefs onboard who are ready to prepare hot or cold meals on order.

Comfort and luxury are just what passengers get in our spacious business class cabin with seats, which also convert to a lie-flat bed when needed. A dedicated crew will assist in making your flight to be as comfortable as possible.

Business class passengers also get additional benefits on ground. A chauffer-driven car to the airport is offered free of cost on select routes for business class customers. At the airport, business class passengers have access to bmi’s flagship international lounge, The Great British Lounge. Here, customers find a stylish haven in which to rest, relax, work, dine or shower before take-off.
 
Q. How about bmi’s Economy Class?
 
A. bmi’s Economy cabin features comfortable seating, up to 32” seat pitch, adjustable foot rest, headrest and lumbar support; and, personal inflight entertainment screens offering the latest movies and music. Passengers flying ‘economy’ get complimentary selection of food and beverages.
 
Q. Do you have anything to add?
 
A. bmi is committed to using technology such as e-ticketing, online booking, self check-in at the airport and via the Internet, helping to smooth and speed up the pre-flight experience. This, combined with streamlined behind-the-scenes processes and procedures, means the airline can boast one of the best punctuality records of any airline operating in the UK.