Category Archives: Aviation

Emirates Skywards has revamped its family, offering to provide a richer, more rewarding programme called ‘My Family’. Family members can now pool up to 100 per cent of Skywards miles earned on Emirates flights, allowing them to redeem rewards faster than before. Each member can pool up to 100 per cent of their miles earned on Emirates flights and the nominated contribution of miles from each member can be adjusted at any time. Emirates Skywards has a global membership of 20 million and all members are eligible to join ‘My Family’. Each account can have up to 8 family members including a nominated Family Head. “We’re always working to enhance our offerings to ensure our members are given greater value, choice and flexibility at every touchpoint across the Emirates Skywards programme. The new enriched ‘My Family’ programme will provide our members with a better, more intuitive customer experience, allowing them to consolidate up to 100 per cent of Skywards Miles earned on Emirates to reap faster rewards as well as tailor the proposition to meet their travel needs,” said Nejib Ben Khedher, Senior Vice President, Emirates Skywards. The new Emirates Skywards ‘My Family’ programme complements the airline’s exceptional family offering both on board and on the ground. In flight, young travellers can look forward to special toys, activity packs, child-friendly meals and dedicated kids’ content on ice, Emirates’ award-winning inflight entertainment system. On the ground, Emirates provides a dedicated family check-in area and complimentary strollers in Dubai and priority boarding for families across all airports.

Emirates has announced that it will introduce the first scheduled commercial Airbus A380 service to Hamburg on October 29. To commemorate the inaugural arrival in Hamburg, the A380 will be deployed on the morning service (EK059/EK060), while from 30 October the A380 will be regularly deployed on the afternoon service (EK061/EK062).  The deployment of the iconic double decker aircraft will represent a capacity increase of over 22 per cent on the route, the airlines said in a statement. With a total of 6,090 weekly seats in each direction, Emirates will offer business and leisure travellers from the North of Germany an even greater choice of travel options to Dubai and to over 150 destinations beyond, highlighting Hamburg’s importance as part of the airline’s global network. Emirates’ Airbus A380 aircraft serving the Dubai-Hamburg route will offer high levels of comfort and high quality service: a total of 516 seats in a three-class configuration, with 426 spacious seats in Economy on the main deck, 76 fully flat bed seats in Business and 14 First Class Private Suites on the upper deck. The Emirates A380 is renowned for its First Class Shower Spas as well as the Onboard Lounge for First and Business Class passengers, arguably the most popular social spot at 40,000 feet. Passengers in all classes enjoy free Wi-Fi to stay in touch with family and friends and Emirates’ multi-award winning ‘ice’ inflight entertainment with up to 3,500 channels of movies, TV programmes, music and podcasts on the industry’s biggest personal screens in each class of travel.

Etihad Cargo has launched its first humanitarian freighter missions as part of the Etihad’s extensive Year of Zayed programme, which will take place throughout 2018. The specially branded Year of Zayed Boeing 777 freighter aircraft departed Abu Dhabi – first to Almaty in Kazakhstan and then to Hyderabad in India – carrying special provisions to be distributed to those in need during the Holy Month of Ramadan. The humanitarian missions are taking place throughout the year in collaboration with the Khalifa Foundation, the Red Crescent, and His Highness Sheikh Sultan Bin Khalifa Al Nahyan Humanitarian & Scientific Foundation. These missions represent the Year of Zayed theme of respect, one of the four key themes of Etihad’s Year of Zayed activation plan. Peter Baumgartner, Etihad Airways’ Chief Executive Officer, said, “We are pleased to have commenced our first Year of Zayed humanitarian operations with our cargo aircraft which is crossing the globe to deliver vital items to help people most in need. The humanitarian missions embody the spirit and values of the UAE’s founding father, HH Sheikh Zayed, and we are proud to play a small role in carrying forward his legacy and supporting people in need from around the globe.”

Emirates has commenced its signature Ramadan service for customers during the holy month. Emirates’ Ramadan service consists of specially crafted iftar meals on board, relevant programming on its ice inflight entertainment system, and the distribution of dates and water on the ground for those breaking their fast. The airlines provides iftar boxes with a nutritional meal for customers breaking their fast on board. The boxes have been redesigned this year by local homeware specialists Silsal Design House. The designs are inspired by the Middle East, its people, places and culture. Silsal has also created bespoke Emirates Arabic Coffee Cups available at the Emirates Official Stores. The iftar boxes provide a nutritious meal for customers to break their fast and includes couscous salad & grilled chicken or moudardara & roasted chicken, sandwiches, spinach fatayer or tomato and onion fatayer, assorted sweets, dates, laban and water. The boxes have been designed for customers to take away if they wish. The menus will be refreshed mid-Ramadan. These special meals will be available to passengers across all cabin classes on select Emirates flights that coincide with iftar times. This includes flights to and from the Gulf region as well as flights catering to Umrah groups travelling to Jeddah and Medina during the month of Ramadan. During the holy month, cold meals will be served in lieu of a hot one on all flights to Jeddah and Medina, including Umrah day flights. Emirates utilises a unique tool to calculate the correct timings for imsak (the time to commence fasting) and iftar while in-flight.

Turkish Airlines has added Krasnodar in Russia to its flight network as the 303rd destination, which currently operates its flight to Moscow, St. Petersburg , Sochi, Rostov, Kazan, Ekaterinburg, Voronezh, Samara and Ufa in Russia. Krasnodar flights will be operated five times per week in both directions. At the opening ceremony, Ahmet Olmuştur, Chief Marketing Officer, Turkish Airlines stated that, ‘’Turkish Airlines flying to the most countries of the world; continues to work on growth plans by adding new aircraft to its fleet and expanding its flight network. With the flights that we launched to Krasnodar, we have presented Turkish Airlines quality and service concept to this beautiful city. We will operate direct flights to Krasnodar from İstanbul 5 times a week in both direction . So , we are glad to launch flights to Krasnodar which has become the 10th destination in Russia’’. Round trip fares are available from Istanbul to Krasnodar starting at $280, including all taxes and fees.

In a move to enhance customer experience and operational efficiency at security check points at Dubai International (DXB) and Dubai World Central (DWC), Dubai Airports together with Dubai Police General Department of Dubai Security signed a Memorandum of Understanding in Dubai with the International Air Travel Association (IATA) and Airports Council International (ACI) to become part of their joint initiative on Smart Security. The Security initiative aims to bring specific and measurable improvements in security effectiveness, operational efficiency and passenger experience at airport security checkpoints through better use of technology, process innovation, and the use of risk-based security concepts. The MoU will pave way for Dubai Airports, together with airlines, control authorities, regulators and solution providers, to benefit from the knowledge and lessons gained through trials and research activities at other participating airports. “We manage the world’s busiest international airport with more than 90 million passengers passing through our facilities annually. To achieve our vision of being the best in customer experience as well as to provide the capacity to accommodate ongoing and future growth, it is imperative that we look to new technologies and processes to significantly reduce wait times and avoid queuing wherever possible. Our participation in the Smart Security initiative of IATA and ACI is a big step in that direction,” said Buti Qurwash, Vice President of Security, Dubai Airports.

Air Arabia Egypt launched direct flights between Egypt and Italy, serving Milan twice a week from its hub in Alexandria, Egypt. The inaugural flight E5103 landed in Milan Bergamo International Airport on May 4 and was received by an Air Arabia delegation, including the Group Chief Executive Officer Adel Al Ali along with Milan Bergamo International Airport Chief Executive Officer Emilio Bellingardi. The direct flights operate on Fridays and Sundays under two different timings. On Fridays, the flights depart from Alexandria International Airport at 16:10 hours, landing in Milan Bergamo International Airport at 19:45 hours local time. The return flights depart from Milan at 20:30, and arrive at Alexandria at 24:00 hours local time. On Sundays, the flights depart from Alexandria International Airport at 07:10 hours local time, landing in Milan Bergamo International Airport at 10:45 hours local time. The return flights from Milan at 11:30, landing in Alexandria at 15:00 hours local time. Al Ali, said, “Adding Milan to the network of our rapidly expanding Egypt Hub forms an important part of Air Arabia’s ongoing commitment to our passengers to access affordable and unique holiday destinations. Italy is an important market for Air Arabia and we are glad to serve Milan with direct flights from both our hubs in Morocco and Egypt. We strongly believe in the important role airlines play in connecting nations and cultures together.

Major General Mohammed Ahmed Al Marri, Director General, General Directorate, Residency and Foreigners Affairs – Dubai (GDRFA-D) has said that by 2030, the smart gates at Dubai airports will replace passport officials’ platforms with a view to reducing the human involvement factor in application of Dubai’s 10X initiative. Delivering the welcome address at the Airport Security Middle East conference on the second day of the 18th edition of Airports Show, Al Marri said, “We have created smart gates projects in an exclusive and modern way, and these amount now to about 122 smart gates. We have created a number of smart projects in Dubai international airports, the latest of which is “Next-Generation Departure” project, which will enable passengers complete their travel procedures in the least time possible.” Delivering the opening keynote address, Col Hamooda Belsuwaida Alameri, Assistant Director General Operations at General Department of Airport Security, Dubai Police said, “Dubai police has plans to coordinate its human resources and capabilities to ensure security at airports. The airport security challenges are land side security, cyber security and security check points. Airports, the police and the security agencies need to collaborate and exchange information as well as to do risk assessments to ensure security on all fronts.” Technologies have been put into strategies and plans to have security checkpoints of the future to make Dubai airports safe and secure for all our clients, he added.

Jet Airways, India’s premier full service international airline has entered its 25 years of service. Credited with transforming the face of Indian aviation, Jet Airways first flight 9W321 took off on the 5th of May 1993 from Mumbai to Ahmedabad, marking its humble journey of ‘Connecting India to the World.’ From a modest beginning of a fleet of 4 aircraft serving 6 destinations in early 1993 – to its present day fleet of a 119, serving over 450 destinations globally along with its partner airlines; Jet Airways has been privileged to play a modest role in contributing to the growth of the Indian economy by enabling and facilitating passenger and freight businesses pan-India as well as internationally, and as significantly, fostering the growth of trade and tourism across India and the world. On the occasion of the 25th Anniversary, Naresh Goyal, Chairman, Jet Airways’ Group said, “This day represents an unforgettable milestone and is a mix of emotion and elation for us all. We are both humbled and honoured by the overwhelming trust, support and appreciation received from our Guests over the years, as we fondly recall the first steps we took on what has been a truly exciting journey in bringing the Joy of Flying to millions of our Guests. It gives me great pleasure to reaffirm our commitment to them and to our vision of connecting India to the world. Our partners also deserve a special mention for their consistent support that has surpassed our expectations.”

Emirates has announced the year-round service from Edinburgh to Dubai from October 1, 2018. The new service will be operated by an Emirates Boeing 777-300ER in a three class cabin configuration, with eight private suites in First Class, 42 lie flat seats in Business Class and 304 spacious seats in Economy Class. The Scottish capital, with its Old Town and New Town both being UNESCO World Heritage Sites, is the second most visited city in the UK by tourists. It is famed for its rich history, cultural and architectural attractions, gourmet food scene, as well as international festivals and cultural events. It was also the first city in the world to be designated a UNESCO City of Literature, while last year it was named by the European Union as the top city of its size in Europe for culture and creativity. “We’re increasing our capacity to Scotland to meet growing demand, and by introducing a daily flight to Edinburgh, it will complement our current double daily flights between Dubai and Glasgow. Edinburgh is a very popular leisure and business destination, and the new service will offer our customers from across our global network, particularly from key inbound markets such as Asia and Australia, a direct option to the city via our Dubai hub. It will also be a more convenient point for travellers from the greater Edinburgh area, and beyond, such as Aberdeen and Dundee, to travel with Emirates to Dubai and onward to destinations across our network,” said Hubert Frach, Emirates’ Divisional Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations, West. Gordon Dewar, Chief Executive of Edinburgh Airport, commented, “This is a fantastic announcement for Edinburgh Airport as we welcome another world …