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May 20 - flydubai launched its 15th destination last night when its first flight to the Egyptian city of Luxor departed from Dubai International Airport in Terminal 2. Luxor is flydubai’s second destination in Egypt, after Alexandria, and next Monday the carrier will begin flight service to its third Egyptian destination in Assuit, the biggest town in Upper Egypt. Luxur is synonymous with ancient Egyptian…
May 20- UAE airlines continue to operate normally to and from Bangkok despite the spate of violence and bloody protests in the city which have spread throughout parts of Thailand. Some carriers report passenger loads that are nearly 50 percent lighter. Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva last night imposed a 10 hour curfew, between 8 pm and 6 am (Bangkok local time) for the next three days. James Hogan, Etihad…
May 20 - Emirates Airline’s A380 superjumbo will return to New York on October 31, the airline announced on Wednesday. The decision was made after huge revenues were reported for the Americas in 2009-10, representing a year-on-year rise of 8.1 percent. Given the growth in the Americas, the airline got a profit of AED3.5 billion (US$ 964 million), while 27.5 million passengers flew with Emirates over the last…
May 20 - British Airways (BA) has announced that its flights will be taking off as scheduled over the weekend, given London High Court’s decision to suspend a strike of cabin crew. "Come Friday or Saturday, they're expecting things to be back to normal,” said an airline spokesperson. A Bahrain flight had been cancelled but was reinstated at the last minute given the rulings issued by courts on Monday night.…
May 20 - Middle East Airlines (MEA) has announced that it will take strict measures if pilots insist on carrying out a strike, said sources from the airline on Tuesday. “MEA management will definitely not treat the second pilots’ strike as it did the first. This decision has been adopted on the highest levels,” they added. However, they failed to say what kind of action will be taken. Almost all political…
May 19 - Etihad Airways has launched an online visa-processing service, the airline announced yesterday. The service has been launched in collaboration Indian-based TT Services, which has already been contracted as a visa outsourcing service provider in India, Sri Lanka, South Korea, Sweden, Russia and the UAE. “The service allows citizens and residents of the country where it is available, travelling on…
May 19 - The Royal Jordanian airline has announced that services to Kuala Lumpur will resume from June 2. The resumption will take place after a seven-year-long gap. Services were suspended in 2003 owing to the weak economic feasibility of the route. Talking about the move, the airline’s President/CEO Hussein Dabbas said that the route was being restarted given Malaysia’s economic revival and growth of its…
May 18 - The International Air Transport Association (IATA) yesterday said growth in demand for business and first class seats continued to grow in March. Iata said demand for premium class seats in March increased 10.8 percent compared to the same month last year, and 25 percent at an annualized rate in the first quarter of the year compare to the same period last year. Iata said in its latest premium…
May 18 - The Bahrain Interior Ministry confirmed that 16 people were detained for allegedly trying to enter Bahrain using fake passports. Two Iranians were held on May 8 for trying to enter Bahrain with forged UK passports, and a day later 12 Chinese and 2 Singaporeans were also detained for trying to enter Bahrain International Airport with fake passports. Public Prosecution, British, Chinese, Singaporean,…
May 18 – Expedia, the US-based online travel reservation website, said that demand for three star hotel properties increased 70 percent in the first quarter of this year compared to the same period last year. However, data shows that three star hotels accounted for only one third of new properties added in the Middle East last year. The STR Global Construction Pipeline Report shows that luxury hotels continue…
Doha, QATAR – Qatar Airways has begun cargo operations using its brand new Boeing B777 Freighter, with the plane’s first flight departing from Doha for Amsterdam early Tuesday morning. The new cargo freighter was delivered to the airline’s hub at Doha International Airport over the weekend following a non-stop flight from Boeing Everett factory in Seattle, Washington. The B777F is the latest addition to the…
May 18 - Emirates Airlines has announced that its passengers can apply for 96-hour and 30-day visas to Dubai through its website. The visa applications will be quite like the online flight booking process on its website and can be accessed by all those who possess an Emirates ticket. "Advancements in aviation are often related to simplifications in the travel process," said Emirates Divisional Senior…
May 18 - Air traffic in the UAE went down by more than 1,000 in April as compared to March, a direct result of the volcanic ash cloud that severely affected the airline industry last month. However, according to UAE's General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), the air traffic movements were still 10 per cent more than those seen in April 2009. Figures released by the authority showed that despite disruption in…
May 18 - British Airways announced on Monday that its Gulf flights will be affected by the airline’s strike that begins today. "Regrettably, we have had to cancel flights on the Doha-Bahrain-London Heathrow route as well as some Jeddah and Dubai services during the first wave of strikes between May 18 to 22," said an airline spokesperson yesterday. "There will also be some cancellations of flights on May 23 as we…
May 18 - Flydubai successfully completed its inaugural flight to Kabul, it was learnt yesterday. Passengers on the flight included the UAE Ambassador to Afghanistan, His Excellency Yousuf Khamis Saeed Subaa Al Ali and Flydubai’s COO Ken Gile. The aircraft operating on the route was Boeing 737-800NG. Speaking on the occasion, Ghaith Al Ghaith, the carrier’s CEO, said: "Flydubai’s inaugural flight to Kabul speaks…
Saudi Arabian Airlines, Saudi Arabia’s national airline, has become the newest operator of the Airbus A330, after taking delivery of its first long range Airbus aircraft in almost 30 years. The aircraft was delivered at a ceremony in Toulouse attended by Mr. Abdul Aziz Al Hazmi, Deputy Director General of Saudi Arabian Airlines, and John Leahy, Airbus Chief Operating Officer, Customers. The Rolls-Royce powered…
May 17 - Emirates Airlines on Sunday confirmed that its flight from New Delhi was delayed owing to a passenger complaint against a fellow passenger. "Emirates confirms that its flight EK511 (Delhi-Dubai) was delayed for 1 hour and 15 minutes after a passenger filed a complaint with the captain against a co-passenger. The captain alerted airport authorities who offloaded the baggage of the passenger in question.…
May 17- Emirates airline has increased its airfare on many of its routes, it was learnt on Sunday. Memos in this regard were sent out to travel agents that said that rates would be revised from May 15. Details of the increase, however, were not mentioned. "Like every commercially oriented business, Emirates regularly reviews its fares to reflect market dynamics, including demand,” said the airline’s…
