Commercial Manager (India)      

RwandAir Ltd is the flag carrier airline of Rwanda. It operates domestic and international services to East Africa, Central Africa, West Africa, Southern Africa, Europe and the Middle East from its main base at Kigali International Airport.  Our mission is to provide unsurpassed, safe, and reliable services in air transportation, including strategically linking Rwanda with the outside world while ensuring a fair return on investment. As part of the expansion strategy, we are looking for interested, qualified, and competent candidates to fill the following position:

• Job Title:            Commercial Manager
• Reports to:        Director Global Sales & Distribution
• Department:     Commercial
• Location:           Outstation – India

Job Purpose

To lead and oversee RwandAir’s commercial interests within the assigned country or territory, ensuring sustainable revenue growth, market expansion, operational alignment, and strong stakeholder engagement. The Commercial Manager serves as the airline’s lead commercial representative in-market and is accountable for overall territory performance across passenger sales, cargo contribution, trade partnerships, customer experience, and commercial execution.

The role is responsible for driving strategic market positioning, strengthening distribution performance, identifying growth opportunities, and ensuring alignment between local market activities and RwandAir’s regional and global commercial objectives.

a. Key Duties and Responsibilities:

Strategic Duties

• Develop and execute the country commercial strategy in alignment with regional and corporate commercial objectives.
• Identify strategic growth opportunities within the market, including corporate penetration, trade expansion, partnerships, and route development support.
• Monitor market trends, competitor activity, pricing behavior, customer demand patterns, and economic developments to recommend strategic interventions.
• Strengthen the airline’s market presence and brand visibility through strategic partnerships and local commercial initiatives.
• Represent RwandAir in local aviation forums, trade events, networking platforms, and strategic stakeholder engagements.
• Support route launches, frequency changes, market recoveries, and network expansion initiatives within the territory.
• Provide strategic inputs into network planning, pricing competitiveness, and commercial resource allocation within the territory.
• Prepare and present detailed market intelligence reports, performance reviews, forecasts, recovery plans, and strategic recommendations to regional leadership.

Operational

• Own the commercial performance of the assigned territory, ensuring achievement of revenue, yield, market share, and profitability targets.
• Drive passenger and cargo revenue growth through effective management of trade, corporate, government, and institutional relationships.
• Manage and optimize all distribution channels within the territory including GSAs, travel agencies, OTAs, corporate accounts, and direct sales platforms.
• Lead implementation of tactical sales initiatives, promotional campaigns, and market activation programs to stimulate demand and improve revenue performance.
• Ensure effective execution of pricing, incentive, and trade engagement strategies within the market.
• Monitor agency productivity, trade participation, and sales channel performance, implementing corrective actions where necessary.
• Support the implementation and growth of digital sales initiatives, NDC adoption, and direct channel penetration within the territory. 
• Build and maintain strong relationships with aviation authorities, airport operators, tourism boards, government institutions, corporates, and trade partners.
• Ensure effective management and performance oversight of GSAs and key commercial partners within the market.
• Coordinate closely with Airport Operations, Finance, Cargo, Customer Experience, Revenue Management, and Marketing teams to ensure commercial and operational alignment.
• Lead commercial recovery actions during operational disruptions, schedule changes, irregular operations, or geopolitical events affecting the market.
• Ensure implementation and compliance with company commercial policies, SOPs, audit requirements, and governance standards.
• Monitor service delivery standards within the market and support initiatives aimed at improving customer experience and retention.
• Lead, coach, and develop the country commercial team to ensure high performance, accountability, and continuous capability improvement.
• Drive a performance-oriented culture through regular reviews, target tracking, and implementation of corrective action plans where required.
• Oversee local commercial budgets and ensure efficient utilization of company resources.

b. About You – Minimum Standard Qualifications;

Essential

• Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, Commerce, Marketing, Aviation Management, or a related field.
• Minimum 7-10 years of experience in a commercial, sales, or marketing role within the airline or aviation industry.
• Minimum 2 years of experience in a managerial or leadership position.
• Proven track record in revenue generation, sales target achievement, and market development.
• Experience in managing distribution channels including GDS, OTAs, GSAs, and travel trade.
• Demonstrated experience in corporate account management and government/institutional sales.
• Experience in budget management and commercial performance reporting.

Desirable

• Master’s degree in Business Administration (MBA) or related field.
• Experience working with an African carrier or in an African aviation market.
• Exposure to revenue management, pricing strategies, and network planning.
• Experience with NDC and modern airline distribution technologies.

c. About You – Other Desired Competencies & Skills;

Essential

• Strong knowledge of airline commercial operations, sales strategies, and distribution landscape.
• Ability to develop and execute commercial strategies aligned to corporate objectives.
• Strong negotiation and relationship management skills with trade, corporate, and government partners.
• Proficiency in analysing market data, competitor intelligence, and revenue performance metrics.
• Knowledge of GDS systems (Amadeus, Sabre, Galileo) and airline reservation systems.
• Strong leadership and team management skills with ability to drive performance culture.
• Excellent communication, presentation, and stakeholder engagement skills.
• Financial acumen with ability to manage budgets and interpret commercial reports.
• Ability to work under pressure and lead recovery actions during operational disruptions.

Desirable

• Knowledge of IATA regulations, standards, and airline commercial frameworks.
• Familiarity with RwandAir’s network, products, and target markets.
• Proficiency in digital sales platforms and airline e-commerce tools.
• Multilingual capability, particularly French, given RwandAir’s francophone African network.

d. How to Apply:

• An application letter addressed to the Chief HR & Administration Officer;
• Recent Curriculum Vitae;
• Copies of Notarized Degree/Diploma certificates
• Relevant certificates;
• Copies of academic papers;
• A photocopy of the Passport/National ID;
• Three referees

The deadline for submitting application documents (Only PDF Format) is June 19^th, 2026. Please apply via the link: https://erecruitment.rwandair.com/.