Category Archives: Aviation

Wizz Air expands network, adds more European cities from Abu Dhabi

Wizz Air has launched new exciting travel opportunities from Abu Dhabi to Budapest, Bucharest, Cluj-Napoca, Vienna, Katowice, Catania and Bari. The airline continues to deliver on its promise of providing affordable, hassle-free and sustainable travel for passengers, making travel possible for everyone and contributing to the recovery of the tourism sector in the UAE. These marvellous destinations provide travel options for passengers from Hungary, Romania, Austria, Poland and Italy to the UAE. Tickets are already on sale on wizzair.com and the airline’s mobile app, available in Arabic, with fares on the convenient schedule starting as low as 289* AED. Wizz Air’s network contributes to the diversification of the travel and tourism sector in the UAE by increasing Abu Dhabi’s connectivity from Vienna (Austria) in the West to Mattala (Sri Lanka) in the East. Robert Carey, President of Wizz Air Group said: “We are delighted to launch new attractive routes to Europe with fantastic ultra-low fares. This is another important milestone for Wizz Air as well as for our passengers in the UAE. Our expanding network out of Abu Dhabi demonstrates our continued commitment to increasing connectivity to the UAE capital and making travel experiences available to people of all ages and backgrounds with safe, efficient, travel awaiting all our customers. We look forward to welcoming you on board our aircraft soon.” Francois Bourienne, Chief Commercial Officer at Abu Dhabi Airports said: “We are excited to further strengthen our strategic partnership with Wizz Air Abu Dhabi. Being the operations base of choice for this growing airline is evidence of the solid value proposition of Abu Dhabi International Airport and the business opportunities it presents to customers. We are equally pleased by …

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Kuwait Airways to operate flights to Casablanca from 1st June 2022

As part of its continuous efforts to expand its network, Kuwait Airways announced the operation of its scheduled commercial flights to the city of Casablanca in Morocco, commencing from 1st June 2022, with two flights per week on Sundays and Wednesdays. In this regard, Kuwait Airways Chief Commercial Officer, Dr. Walid Abillama stated, “We are pleased to announce the launching of one of KAC’s newest destinations, which is to and from Casablanca in Morocco. This destination has always been of immense importance to our customers in their preferences, due to its popular touristic attractions as well as its historic and cultural landmarks.” Dr. Abillama explained, “Kuwait Airways is relentlessly striving to assist its customers and provide them with all means of comfort during their travel on board, starting from providing reservations for customers through all available channels and offering them appropriate services, from the check-in at the Terminal 4 and completing their travel procedures with ease. In addition, Kuwait Airways is fully equipped with a diverse fleet of the latest types of different aircraft, equipped with the best comfortable facilities and services for the benefit of customers.” From her side, the Director of Distribution and Network Planning, Mrs. Shorouk Al-Awadi stated, “Choosing Casablanca as a destination complements the plans developed by Kuwait Airways to expand its network of routes around the world and to new and preferred markets that meet the aspirations and requirements of its customers. The selection of this destination came after extensive and systematic research of the feasibility, effectiveness and profitability of this route to the Company.” Mrs. Al-Awadi concluded her statement saying, “ Kuwait Airways is dedicated to the comfort of its passengers and providing them …

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Emirates resumes Bali flights on 1st May, further ramps up global operations

Emirates has announced it will ramp up its global operations with the restart of services to four destinations, including:  Bali (1 May), London Stansted (1 August), Rio de Janeiro (2 November), and Buenos Aires (2 November). The airline has also announced it will boost services to Nigeria, Mauritius and Singapore to serve market demand. In line with the easing of travel restrictions worldwide, Emirates continues to rebuild and expand its global network to meet travel demand. Starting from 1st May, 2022 Emirates will operate five weekly flights to Bali, utilising a two-class Boeing 777-300ER aircraft. The airline will also scale up its operations from 1st July, 2022 to serve the island destination with a daily service. With its spectacular mountains, picturesque beaches and cultural appeal, Bali is considered to be a world leading tourist destination. Starting from 1st August, 2022 Emirates will resume flight operations to London Stansted with five weekly flights, utilising Emirates’ Boeing 777-300ER aircraft fitted with the ‘Game Changer’ First Class product. From 1st September, the airline will increase its services to offer a daily flight. By October 2022, the airline will be serving the UK with 110 weekly flights, including: six times daily to London Heathrow; double daily A380 service to Gatwick; three times daily to Manchester, including a double daily A380 service (starting 1st October, 2022); double daily service to Birmingham; five weekly flights to Newcastle (with the fifth weekly flight starting from 1st July, 2022); and a daily service to Glasgow. Emirates will operate four weekly flights to Buenos Aires via Rio de Janeiro, on its Boeing 777-300ER aircraft from 2nd November, 2022 – offering customers from Argentina and Brazil direct connectivity to popular …

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Güliz Öztürk the first woman CEO in the air transport industry

Güliz Öztürk, Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) of Pegasus Airlines, has been appointed as CEO to succeed Mehmet T. Nane in this role, effective 1 May 2022. Güliz Öztürk will become the first woman CEO in the air transport industry in the history of Turkish civil aviation. Mehmet T. Nane, who has been serving as CEO of Pegasus Airlines since 2016, became a Member of the Board of Directors at its Ordinary Meeting of the General Assembly held on 31 March 2022, and was elected Vice-Chairperson of the Board (Managing Director) following the decision by the Board of Directors. Güliz Öztürk, who has been serving as the company’s CCO since 2010, will succeed Mehmet T. Nane as CEO. Mehmet T. Nane and Güliz Öztürk will officially begin their new roles from 1 May 2022. Mehmet T. Nane said: “I am delighted to be passing the CEO baton, which I received in 2016, to Güliz Öztürk, who has made significant contributions to the growth and development of Pegasus for many years. I wholeheartedly believe that she will continue to wave the flag of Pegasus brightly in the skies. This appointment holds great value and significance also as Güliz Öztürk is to become the first woman CEO of an airline in the history of Turkish civil aviation…”  He continued: “The aviation sector has gone through a very challenging period both domestically and globally due to the pandemic. As part of the framework of my continued role as President of Turkish Private Aviation Enterprises Association (TÖSHİD), and my role as IATA Chair of the Board, which will commence in June, I will fight for the sustainable development of the civil aviation sector; whilst in …

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Kuwait Airways to operate two flights per week to Salalah

Kuwait Airways Chief Executive Officer, Eng. Maen Razouqi, received the Ambassador of the Sultanate of Oman to the State of Kuwait, H.E. Dr. Saleh bin Amer Al-Kharousi, in the presence of the Company’s Board Member, Mr. Ahmed Al-Ibrahim at the Kuwait Airways headquarters. The two parties discussed methods to enhance joint cooperation and bilateral relations, to develop them in all aspects related to the aviation sector. They also touched on the extent of relations between the State of Kuwait and the Sultanate of Oman, and the convergence of views between them in all that is related to public interest and in the benefit of both parties. They also focused on ways to achieve the desired objectives in consolidating and strengthening the level of relations between the two countries. On the sidelines of the visit, the CEO, Maen Razouqi, appreciated the diplomatic efforts of the State of Kuwait and the Sultanate of Oman and in the bilateral relations that bring together the two countries in various political, economic, cultural, and other fields. This in turn contributes to the consolidation and strengthening of relations and their continuity in the long term in a manner that leads to their better development to assist others and achieve the desired ambitions. Razouqi said, “We are honored to receive the Ambassador, Dr. Saleh Al-Kharousi, as this visit comes within the framework of the well-established relations and extended cooperation between the two countries.” Razouqi commenced his discussions with the Ambassador and stated, “Kuwait Airways has recently announced the launching of a number of new destinations, including the city of Salalah in the Sultanate of Oman. The Blue Bird’s first flight to Salalah will operate from 7th of …

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Emirates to operate double daily A380 flights to Mauritius from 1st July 2022

Emirates will be operating twice daily flights on its flagship A380 aircraft to Mauritius from 1 July 2022 to meet the increase in demand for travel to the island nation. Emirates currently operates daily flights to Mauritius . In line with rising demand, the airline will be scaling up operations from daily to nine weekly flights between 09 April 2022 and the end of June 2022 and then moving up to double daily flights from July 2022. Emirates’ second daily flight will provide an important boost to tourism to the Indian Ocean destination which has now relaxed entry restrictions for travellers. The additional flight will also provide more choice in flight timings and seamless connectivity to customers from markets across Europe, Americas and the Middle East looking to travel to Mauritius to enjoy its sandy beaches, crystal clear waters and lush natural landscapes. The Emirates A380 experience remains a customer favourite offering 14 First Class suites, 76 lie-flat seats in Business Class and 426 ergonomically designed seats in Economy Class. Customers travelling to and from Mauritius can once again look forward to enjoying the aircraft’s spacious and comfortable cabins and the unmissable signature products and services, including the iconic A380 Onboard Lounge and Shower Spa. Guests in all classes can enjoy regionally inspired cuisine designed by award winning chefs and non-stop entertainment on their flights with ice, Emirates’ award winning inflight entertainment system featuring a catalogue of over 4,500 channels featuring movies, music, TV shows, podcasts, audiobooks, games and more. Customers can make their bookings to travel to Mauritius on emirates.com, the Emirates App or via local Emirates sales offices or through travel agents. Emirates is committed to Mauritius and …

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KLM celebrates 50th anniversary of first flight to Dubai with airport ceremony

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines (KLM) has marked the 50th anniversary of the airline’s first passenger flight to Dubai, which arrived on 5th April 1972. The anniversary flight was greeted on arrival at Dubai International Airport by airport representatives and KLM staff, who joined a ceremony to mark the milestone. KLM started services to Dubai on 5th April 1972 with a once-a-week connection via Athens and Dhahran, operating an extended Douglas DC-8 jet aircraft. The flight returned from Dubai on April 6th. At that time, Dubai International airport handled around 500,000 passengers per year (1970 figures) and Schiphol Airport more than 5 million. In 2021, Schiphol welcomed 25.5 million passengers (in 2019 pre-Covid the total was almost 72 million); Dubai International welcomed 29.1 million people in 2021, and 86.4 million in 2019 (pre-Covid). Speaking about the 50th anniversary of KLM’s first flight to Dubai, Simon Scholte, General Manager Middle East, Air France KLM said: “This is a very special occasion marking the amazing milestone of KLM’s first passenger service to Dubai. We have the additional honour of celebrating this anniversary during the UAE’s ‘Year of the 50th’ and at the conclusion of this extraordinary global event, Expo 2020 Dubai. It’s a time to pause briefly and reflect on Dubai’s remarkable progress over the last 50 years and to express our gratitude to Dubai government and the airport authorities for their tremendous support. It’s also a time to look ahead at the strong and growing relationship between Dubai and KLM, and our shared commitment to innovation and sustainability.” Air France KLM offers flights from various cities in the Middle East to the airline’s two hubs at Paris-Charles de Gaulle and Amsterdam-Schiphol, connecting …

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Royal Jordanian Airlines introduces new exclusive services in Iraq

Being the largest foreign carrier covering major cities of Iraq, RJ serves five Iraqi cities with multiple flights to/from Baghdad, Basra, Erbil, Najaf and Sulaymaniah, with over 30 frequencies per week. Additionally, RJ will offer complimentary hotel accommodation in Amman to transit passengers who are traveling from Iraq via Amman to other worldwide RJ destinations in Europe, USA, Canada, and the Arabian Gulf. Royal Jordanian’s Chief Commercial Officer Karim Makhlouf said: “We are committed to offer our passengers in Iraq the best connectivity with our global network via Amman to over 32 worldwide destinations. To cater for their needs, passengers will receive free visa and hotel accommodation for any connecting flight via Amman exceeding 8 hours.” In line with RJ’s expansion plans in Iraq, the airline and the National Bank of Iraq (NBI) sealed an agreement to introduce the first co-branded credit card in Iraq under RJ’s frequent flyer program “Royal Club”. This co-branded credit card allows its holders the opportunity to earn additional miles on each payment when using the bank’s credit card, whilst exchanging these miles against many rewards that the program offers ranging from flight tickets, upgrade on their travel booking class, extra baggage allowance and many other benefits. Karim Makhlouf said: “In line with its five-year plan, RJ will double its fleet and expand its route network; it is also placing Iraq as a key market in its growth plan. For this end, we are signing different partnerships with Iraqi institutions, among which is our partnership with the National Bank of Iraq. We are delighted to cooperate with NBI and introduce the first co-branded credit card in Iraq.” He added that this partnership will increase Iraqi …

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Gulf Air participates in the Formula 1 Stc Saudi Arabian Grand Prix

Gulf Air participated in the Formula 1 stc Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, which was held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia from 25-27 March. The national carrier hosted its VIP guests, partners and travel agents at its Paddock Club at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit. Gulf Air Acting CEO, Captain Waleed Al-Alawi, praised the organization and the quality of performance that he witnessed in the race, adding, “We were pleased to welcome our customers in the Saudi market, which is of special importance to Gulf Air. As the official sponsor of the Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix, which was the inaugural race of the Formula 1 season in 2022, we are pleased with the success of the stc Formula 1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in Jeddah, especially in view of our strong relationship with the Saudi market and our partners in it, and the long historical relations linking the Kingdom of Bahrain with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Congratulations to Saudi Arabia for another successful race, and we wish Formula 1 more success in the future.” At the 2022 Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix in Bahrain, and for the second Formula 1 race in a row, Gulf Air performed a low-emission flypast over the Bahrain International Circuit. Gulf Air is the official sponsor of the Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix since its historic launch in Bahrain in April 2004 as the first ever Formula 1 race in the Middle East; and has been contributing to the success of this sporting and social event and ensuring its excellence at all levels.  

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Emirates introduces 25 unique mobile Check-in Ports at DXB Terminal 3

Emirates is introducing 25 mobile Check-in Ports at Dubai International airport Terminal 3 as part of its commitment to continuously innovate at every customer touchpoint and improve the journey experience. These portable units will be deployed throughout the check-in halls at Dubai Airport Terminal. Agents at the Check-in Ports, which were developed in the UAE, will help check-in customers, weigh the bags, tag them, and will also provide boarding passes. Once tagged, porters will place luggage on a dedicated belt destined for each passengers’ aircraft. Each Check-in Port has a scale attached to it for weighing luggage and Emirates’ agents will be also on hand at each station to provide assistance and answer any queries passengers may have. Passengers with two or less bags checking in at Economy, Business and First Class will be encouraged to use the service, which will help cut down on queues and reduce waiting times during peak hours. Adel Al Redha, Emirates’ Chief Operating Officer, said: “The use of advanced technologies and robots will continue to be introduced in our operational and customer touchpoints. We are committed to continually uplift our services and provide our customers a seamless experience and better journeys. Our latest Check-in Portals are a step in this direction and we are also working on other initiatives that rely on technology and artificial intelligence, to be introduced in the near future at different areas. We are fortunate to work with partners who share the same vision in utilising digital platforms and advanced technologies to improve processes and ultimately, customer experience.” Emirates’ drive for ceaseless innovation and unrivalled customer experience has seen the airline previously launch an integrated biometric path at Dubai International …

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