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July 4th - Passengers from more than 20 countries travelled on Emirates' inaugural flight to Prague on Thursday, the airline said yesterday after becoming the first Arab carrier to service the route. Emirates president Tim Clark, who headed the delegation on the first flight, said: "Prague is our second European route launch this year after Amsterdam on May 1 and our 103rd destination globally. The Czech…
July 1 - International air-passenger traffic is back above pre-recession levels and Middle Eastern carriers continue to post strong growth, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said. Global scheduled traffic statistics for May show an 11.7 percent increase in passenger traffic and a 34.3 percent jump in freight demand compared to May 2009. Middle East carriers, which are still…
June 30 - The UAE’s fourth national carrier, Rak Airways, which suspended its services in May 2009 because of exceptionally difficult market conditions, announced it will relaunch services by the end of the year. Omar Bin Saqr Al Qassimi, chairman of RAK Airways, said “We are now ready to enter the market. We have a lot of exciting new plans for the airline, which will be unveiled soon.” Al Qassimi said the…
June 30 - Kuwait parliament on Tuesday passed the 2010-2011 budget of state-owned Kuwait Airways Corporation (KAC) with a projected deficit of $180 million. Revenues for the privatisation-bound airline are projected at $853 million while expenditure is estimated at 1.033 billion dollars. The fiscal year runs from April 1 to March 31, 2011. KAC chairman Hamad al-Falah said the national carrier…
June 29 - Air Arabia Egypt announced yesterday the launch of its services to Beirut, (Lebanon) from its third hub in Alexandria starting July 1, 2010. Roundtrip flights will operate four times a week between Burj Al Arab International Airport, Alexandria and Beirut-Rafic Hariri International Airport, Lebanon. The LCC will fly to Beirut on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays. Flights depart…
Kuwait-based Wataniya Airways has appointed Green Meadows Travel and Tourism as the airline's new general sales agent in Amman, Jordan. Wataniya Airways recently celebrated one year of flights to Amman.
BRAZIL / ARGENTINA – Qatar Airways today celebrated yet another milestone in its short history with the launch of scheduled daily flights to Brazil and Argentina marking its foray into South America for the first time. Brazil’s largest city Sao Paulo and the Argentinian capital Buenos Aires have joined the airline’s growing list of destinations, taking the Doha-based carrier’s global network up…
June 25 - Emirates Airlines is talking to local and international banks to finance the purchase of new aircrafts that are to be delivered after May 2011, said a senior airline executive. The airline has already arranged for the money for deliveries by May 2011 but it needs financing for deliveries beyond that date, said Brian Jeffery, Emirates' Senior Vice-President for Commercial Treasury. "We have…
June 25 - Dubai’s budget carrier, flydubai has launched its fourth destination this week when its inaugural flight to Sri Lanka landed at the Colombo airport. Flydubai’s CEO Ghaith Al Ghaith expressed his delight at the airlines expansion into the subcontinent and was certain of the growth potential flydubai will have in this market: "We're delighted to be able to expand our range of destinations in the…
June 24 - Etihad Airways CEO James Hogan on Wednesday criticised the competition, particularly those who have accepted subsidies from the government. “We have been very different,” he said while addressing an Australian business group in Abu Dhabi. “Unlike many of the original flag-carriers, which ran for decades on Government hand-outs, subsidies and support, our shareholder has been very clear about the return…
June 24 - UAE airlines flying to and from the region will be required to meet insurance guidelines by July 1 or they will face suspension of operations, said the General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) on Wednesday. The regulation that was announced earlier this year came into effect from February 1. It will be implemented in three phases, said the authority. The third step will be implemented in January…
June 24 - Emirates Airline has postponed the launch of its Baghdad route for operational reasons, said an airline spokesperson on Wednesday. The route was supposed to have been launched from July 1, 2010. "Due to operational reasons, Emirates has temporarily postponed the July 1 Baghdad route launch to sometime later in the year," said the spokesperson. "Emirates will liaise with the affected passengers…
June 23 - Royal Jordanian (RJ) announced on Sunday that it has increased the number of daily flights from 100 to 110. This is in response to thegrowing demand for travel during the summer months. Seat bookings during July and August show record figures for the first time in RJ’s history, said the statement, adding that initial bookings for July are more than 320,000 and are still growing. Daily flights…
Doha, QATAR – Qatar Airways today announced its expansion programme was continuing with vigour with plans to launch six new routes in Europe and Asia from October 2010. The Doha-based airline will phase in the route expansion over a four-month period with daily flights to Phuket – after Bangkok, its second destination in Thailand – kicking off the growth drive on October 11. The new flights will…
June 22 - Dubai’s low-cost carrier flydubai debuted its first flights to Latakia (Syria) and Karachi (Pakistan) yesterday. Flydubai is now flying to three separate cities in Syria while Karachi is its first Pakistani destination. Speaking on the occasion, flydubai’s CEO Ghaith Al Ghaith said: "We're very pleased to be able to provide another flight to Syria and we are confident that the vibrant port of…
June 21 - Gulf Air officials on Sunday said that their newly introduced routes will increase flight frequencies around the Middle East and the airline’s performance will inevitably improve. Earlier this month, Gulf Air launched a service to Alexandria (June 2), Aleppo, Syria, (June 15) and Madinah (June 17). "These are new moves towards regaining our status as a regional and subsequently as an…
June 21 - British Airways (BA) bookings for scheduled flights from the UAE have gone down by 50 per cent this summer because of cabin crew strikes. Adeel Ahmed, Supervisor of the Outbound Department at Belhasa Tourism and Travel in Dubai said when bookings for this summer are compared to those earlier this year before industrial action began the difference is almost half. “We do tell [passengers] about the…
June 21 - Tunisian airline Sevenair is all set to start regular flights between Tunis and Naples from June 29. Flights will be operate twice a week on Tuesdays and Saturdays, said a statement issued last week. The new flight is yet another endeavour by the company to establish itself internationally and venture into new markets. The new service will also enhance the capacities of Italian tour operators in…
