He became President of Emirates airline in 2003 after spending 18 years helping build an aviation empire which owes much to the route networks he established soon after joining as Head of Airline Planning.
Mr Clark joined Emirates in 1985 after establishing a reputation as a talented route planner during four years at Bahrain’s Gulf Air, which had recruited him from the now-defunct British Caledonian Airways.
Using this experience, combined with the skills he developed while attaining an economics degree from London University in 1971, he scrutinised demographic data and passenger statistics to identify profitable new routes for Emirates.