Dar’ya Zherlitsyna is a seasoned aviation and infrastructure executive with over 20 years of leadership experience across airport management, airline operations, and large-scale infrastructure development. She is the Subject Matter Expert (SME) in Aviation & Infrastructure at Baker Tilly UAE. She has successfully led strategic transformation initiatives spanning airport concessions, public-private partnerships (PPP), commercial development, procurement optimization, and route expansion across Central Asia and Eastern Europe.
She specializes in airport commercialization, PPP and privatization advisory, financial planning, procurement transformation, and commercial negotiations. Her experience includes representing UAE-based airport investors in complex government engagements, negotiating high-value concession agreements, and delivering strategic initiatives that enhance operational efficiency, passenger experience, and long-term asset value.
Dar’ya has extensive expertise in airport governance, regulatory compliance, stakeholder management, and non-aeronautical revenue optimization. She has led major procurement reforms, developed commercial frameworks aligned with international best practices, and supported investment decisions for airport expansion, infrastructure modernization, and aviation sector transformation.
Her industry expertise spans airports, airlines, aviation infrastructure, government entities, transport, tourism, and infrastructure investment, with particular strength in concession-based airport operations, commercial strategy, and investor-led transformation.
Experience
Dar’ya currently advises on airport commercialization, concession management, procurement transformation, and infrastructure development projects. She has played a pivotal role in the delivery of airport investment programmes, PPP governance structures, commercial master planning, and strategic procurement initiatives.
Most recently, as Project Manager and Head of Procurement Functions for Astana International Airport under a UAE-based airport investor, she contributed to the successful execution of a USD 190 million long-term investment programme covering airport expansion, commercial development, and passenger experience enhancement. She also led procurement transformation initiatives that generated more than USD 4 million in savings and incremental revenues through governance reforms, strategic sourcing, and cost optimization.
Previously, she led airport and ground handling procurement for Ukraine International Airlines, managing commercial agreements across more than 100 international stations, delivering significant cost efficiencies while strengthening operational resilience and service quality. Earlier in her career, she held senior leadership roles at Donetsk Sergey Prokofiev International Airport, where she led route development strategies, secured public funding for airport expansion projects, established airline incentive programmes, and delivered sustained passenger and network growth through strategic airline partnerships.
Involvement
- Member, Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)
Education
- Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Economics
- Master in Finance
- Bachelor’s Degree (Economics)
Expertise
- Airport Concessions, PPP & Privatization Advisory, Airport Commercial Strategy
- Airport Operations, Procurement Transformation & Cost Optimization
- Financial Planning, Budgeting, Forecasting & Commercial Governance
- Route Development, Airline Partnerships & Network Expansion
- Infrastructure Investment, Commercial Negotiations & Stakeholder Management
- Government Relations, Regulatory Compliance & Enterprise Transformation
- Airports & Airlines, Aviation Infrastructure, Government, Transport, Tourism & Infrastructure Investment