Category Archives: Aviation

The first dual International Air Transport Association (IATA) New Distribution Capability (NDC) Certified travel technology provider unveiled that it will be launching ihlah.com – Middle East and Africa’s first Travel Search Engine, by the second quarter of 2017.  ihlah.com is a travel search website accompanied by top-ranked mobile Apps for travellers living in the Middle East & Africa region. “Ihlah.com is Africa & Middle East’s Region’s first Travel Search Site targeting a market of 482 million Internet users in the region and 232 million passengers who travelled by air. We help travellers with a comprehensive browsing experience to compare flight and hotel options and pricing from various suppliers while keeping shoppers engaged in a single tab. Ihlah.com presents an unbiased comparison of all travel products and prices offered in the marketplace by merchants both local and global and enables shoppers to quickly find the best deal and place to book, whether from airline, hotel direct or with a third party aggregator website. Ihlah.com harnesses powerful yet simple to use technology based on IATA’s New Distribution Capability (NDC) that automates the process of searching and comparing results from hundreds of airline, hotel and online travel agency websites,” said Praveen Kumar, Chief Technology Officer of TPConnects. For registered users, to search and compare travel products on ihlah.com will be offered as free of cost, while it works on a Cost Per Acquisition and/or Cost Per Click business model with airlines, hotels and online travel agencies.

Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, and The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) signed a landmark $1 million agreement to increase tourism to Thailand. Under the new agreement, the Abu Dhabi-based airline and TAT will jointly promote travel to Thailand from priority markets including the United Arab Emirates, UK, France, Germany, Italy, Egypt and Kuwait. The agreement was signed by Etihad Airways Vice President Marketing,  Tim Burnell, and TAT’s Deputy Governor Tanes Petsuwan at a commemorative event in Bangkok at the Executive Lounge, Grande Centre Point Terminal 21. They were joined by Etihad Airways Senior Manager Marketing, Lamya Al Nuaimi. Burnell said: “Etihad Airways has a long and proud association with Thailand – in fact Bangkok was one of our first international routes. It continues to be one of the busiest in our network enjoying strong year-round demand, particularly from the UAE, GCC, Middle East, Africa and Europe. “With five daily flights to Thailand – four to Bangkok and one to Phuket – Etihad Airways has a significant investment in Thai tourism and the new agreement with Tourism Authority of Thailand supports and extends that commitment.Through innovative joint marketing campaigns, we aim to bring hundreds of thousands of first-time and repeat travellers from Europe and the Middle East to Thailand to enjoy this beautiful country and to experience the warm, friendly hospitality for which the Thai people are world-renowned.” Bangkok continues to be one of Etihad Airways’ busiest routes – around 800,000 guests travelled to and from Bangkok in 2016 alone. In all, more than 6 million guests have flown on the airline’s Thailand routes since 2007 and further growth is expected. Tanes Petsuwan said: “Europe …

Travelport and Flynas, a low-cost carrier from Saudi Arabia, have announced the signing of a multi-year, full content agreement. Launched in 2007, Flynas operates nearly 1,000 weekly flights to 30 destinations within and outside Saudi Arabia. The new agreement will see Flynas’ full content and inventory, including its branded fares and ancillaries become available to over 68,000 travel agencies, across 180 countries through Travelport’s Travel Commerce Platform. Furthermore, the airline now joins over 180 airlines which are currently live on Travelport’s merchandising technology solution for airlines, Travelport Rich Content and Branding. Through Travelport, the airline will be able to effectively promote Flynas’ products and services, including its dedicated Business Class Cabin, which has seen a significant investment from Flynas since 2013. Agents will also be able to access naSmiles, the frequent flyer program of Flynas, through which travellers can earn SMILE Points when booking flights and ancillaries. Also, Rich Content and Branding will enable the airline’s content to appear on travel agents’ screens, with rich, graphical product descriptions, boosting upselling opportunities for the travel agent community at the time of booking. Paul Byrne, Chief Executive Officer at Flynas, commented: “This new agreement with Travelport will provide the platform for our business to further improve our customer service, expand our presence across the globe and grow our revenues. Travelport’s industry leading Travel Commerce Platform has impressive capabilities and we are pleased to have signed this partnership. “ Matthew Powell, Managing Director, Middle East and South Asia, Travelport said: “We are delighted that Flynas has seen the value in our innovative Travel Commerce Platform. Our platform enables travel providers and their evolving technologies to deliver the widest choice of relevant content for …

Qatar Executive has revamped its website www.qatarexec.com.qa where clients can explore the world’s most luxurious private jets via 360 degree interactive panoramic photography, discover flight availability, and access VIP online enquiry and charter management services from any mobile device anywhere in the world. The newly enhanced website reflects Qatar Executive’s boundless commitment to excellence and utilizes the latest online technology to provide clients with fast and convenient access to booking information, including real-time worldwide flight availability of return leg charters. Reflecting the refined and elegant style of Qatar Executive, the new website has been designed to provide an intuitive online experience offering clients a virtual tour on board any one of its exceptional 11 aircraft, including the fastest ultra-long-range business jet in the world, the Gulfstream G650ER, which is one of the most coveted aircraft among the global travelling elite. The Qatar Executive G650ER aircraft can easily fly a group of up to 13 guests non-stop from the Middle East to North America or from destinations in Asia to Africa. It can fly further, faster than any other jet of its kind, and is perfectly suited for those whose travel needs include flights halfway around the globe. The Qatar Executive fleet comprises four Global 5000s, one Global XRS, three Challenger 605s and three brand new Gulfstream G650ERs, each offering the highest levels of personalised service comfort, privacy and convenience, through flexible and individual travel to any place in the world.

Emirates announced it will launch a new daily service from Dubai to Newark Liberty International Airport, via the Greek capital city of Athens, starting March 12, 2017. The new route complements Emirates’ existing four daily flights between Dubai and New York’s JFK airport, by offering global travellers with another convenient access point to the popular New York Metropolitan area. Emirates’ new Dubai-Athens-Newark flight will also provide a year-round non-stop daily service between the United States and Greece – a service that does not exist today and has not existed since 2012. The airline will operate a wide-body Boeing 777-300ER powered by General Electric GE90 engines on the route, offering 8 seats in First, 42 seats in Business and 304 seats in Economy class, as well as 19 tonnes of belly-hold cargo capacity. Sir Tim Clark, President of Emirates Airline, said: “The Greek Government and Athens International Airport approached Emirates some time ago to consider serving the route between Athens and New York.  After careful review, Emirates concluded that extending one of our Dubai-Athens flights to Newark would be commercially and operationally feasible. We are pleased to be able to help meet a strong consumer need long neglected by other airlines, and we would like to thank the authorities and our partners in both the US and Greece for their support of the new route. The availability of high quality, daily international air services is essential for the development of business and cultural ties. Trade, especially in high-value and time-sensitive products, will be facilitated by the ample cargo capacity on Emirates’ Boeing 777 aircraft. We also expect tourism to receive a major boost from the availability of daily flights year-round.” Elena …

Conakry (Republic of Guinea) will be the 296th destination across 120 countries currently being served by Turkish Airlines. The capital city of Republic of Guinea, Conakry will be joining the network on January 30 and become the 51st destination served in the continent. Roundtrip flights between Istanbul and Conakry will be operated 2 times per week on Mondays, and Thursdays in both directions. Introductory round trip fares are available from Istanbul to Conakry starting at $699 (including taxes and fees).  Additionally, for the first 6 months of operation to Conakry, Miles&Smiles members will be able to earn 25% extra status miles. Conakry flight times as scheduled from January 30 — TK 537 on Monday, Thursday at IST              12:30 and CKY by 19:35 with TK 537 on Monday, Thursday at CKY 20:30 and IST 08:40 +1.

The national flag carrier of India, Air India announced the launch of the second Dreamliner from Dubai to Kochi from February 1, 2017. AI 934 will be a daily operation with departure from Dubai at 1330 hours arriving in to Kochi at 1850 hours. The return from Kochi will be AI 933 departing at 0915 hours from Kochi and arrive in Dubai at 1200 hours. The press briefing took place at the Consulate of India presided by Consul General of India H.E. Anurag Bhushan and Melvin D’Silva, Regional Manager Air India Middle East and Africa. The Consul General reiterated that last year the national carrier has seen an increase in capacity and the regional connectivity has improved quite well. H.E. acknowledged the services rendered by Air India especially at the hour of need to evacuate at emergencies or to carry the mortal remains free of cost etc. Melvin D’Silva, Regional Manager Air India Middle East and Africa stated the reason to conduct the press briefing at the Consulate is due to the reason that His Excellency and the consulate has rendered unstinted support. “When one of the aircrafts had to land in Travzone Turkey in the middle of the night, I contacted the Consul General H.E.Anurag Bhushan at 3am and he very quickly provided the necessary arrangements through the Embassy of Turkey. Therefore, we continue to work very closely with the Consul and the team,” stated D’Silva. He further reiterated that Air India is on a very aggressive growth trajectory to become number 3 in the world after US and China with a young strong fleet of 107 aircrafts and their aim is to “fly more and fill more”. Kerala …

Sabre Corporation is supporting Emirates airline with industry-leading technology that personalises the travel experience for consumers by enabling them to easily purchase a range of customised fares. Sabre and Emirates have also signed a new long-term global distribution agreement to make the airline’s fares available to travel agents globally who use Sabre. Emirates, the world’s largest international airline, operates more than 3,600 flights per week to over 150 destinations across six continents. Sabre’s technology will enable the airline to effectively market and sell its expansive roster of fares globally through the Sabre Travel Marketplace, reaching more than 425,000 travel agents across the world. Sabre’s technology enables travel agents to meet a growing demand and expectation from consumers for more personalised products and services. Using Sabre’s enhanced solution, travel agents can now provide travellers with Emirates’ range of branded fares, which enable passengers to choose fares based on what is most important to them – such as purchasing a budget fare, earning the most air miles or having the greatest degree of flexibility. “Emirates airline is a brand that invests significantly in differentiating the traveller experience, and personalisation plays a central role in this strategy,” said Dean Bibb, interim senior vice president EMEA at Sabre. “The airline’s new range of branded fares offers passengers more choices and greater control over their travel experience, which often means happier travellers and higher satisfaction. Helping our airline customers put travellers at the heart of their operation is a major focus for Sabre and our investment efforts.” Travel agents using Sabre can now offer clients more informed choices and a higher level of customer service, while also driving upsell opportunities based on enhanced visibility to …

Emirates, the largest international airline in the world, has announced that it will introduce a third daily flight between Dubai and Kenya’s capital Nairobi from June 1, 2017. The additional flight will increase the number of scheduled Emirates flights between the two cities to 21 a week and give customers greater flexibility and choice when planning their travel. It also underscores Emirates’ commitment to Kenya and confidence in the route, which has grown to become one of the airline’s busiest routes in Africa since it first launched services to the country in October 1995.As with its other two daily flights between Dubai and Nairobi, Emirates will also operate its popular Boeing 777-300ER in a three class configuration. The aircraft will have eight private suites in First Class, 42 lie-flat seats in Business Class and 304 spacious seats in Economy Class. Flight EK717 will become the first of the three daily departures from Dubai and leave at 0140hrs and arrive in Nairobi at 0540hrs, enabling customers arriving on Emirates’ flights from India, the UK and many European countries such as France, the Czech Republic, Ireland, Netherlands and Italy to connect to the Nairobi flight within three hours. The return flight EK718 is also conveniently timed and will depart Nairobi at 0710hrs and land in Dubai at 1315hrs, ahead of Emirates’ afternoon European flights and its fourth daily flight to New York, a popular destination for Kenyan travellers.

Africa’s largest airline group Ethiopian Airlines will begin the first five months of the new year with a rapid network expansion plan to launch seven new destinations from February to June 2017. They envisage to reach 120 international destinations worldwide by 2025. The new destinations from February to June, will launch new service to Victoria Falls (Zimbabwe), Antananarivo (Madagascar), Conakry (Guinea), Oslo (Norway), Chengdu (China), Jakarta (Indonesia) and Singapore (Singapore). With the addition of these stations, Ethiopian will have service from Addis Ababa to 98 different international cities located across the world and just 22 to reach their goal of 120. Group CEO Ethiopian Airlines, Tewolde GebreMariam, said: “Africa’s share of the Global Aviation is the smallest which is only around 3%. As the largest airline group in the continent, we are highly concerned on the low base of air connectivity in the continent and we are setting record expansion to enable Africans enjoy safe, reliable and economical air connectivity both within the continent and between the continent and the rest of the world. Looking beyond the current economic slowdown especially in the oil export dependent economies of Africa, we firmly believe that the continent will become the magnet for foreign direct investment, trade and tourism, which are the engines of air travel growth and in turn efficient air connectivity also drives socio economic development and we are happy to contribute our share in the 21st Century African Transformation. In the just ended calendar year alone, new flights to Moroni (Comoros), WindHoek (Namibia) and Newark (United States) were launched, as well as three cities in Ethiopia: Hawassa, Kebridahar and Dembidolo. Ethiopian is one of the fastest growing airlines in the …