Category Archives: Aviation

Etihad Airways has implemented new features enhancing its chauffeur services in the UAE which will enable customers to book and manage Etihad’s chauffeur services directly through the airline’s upgraded mobile optimised website without calling Etihad’s Contact Centre or a travel agent. Customers can now book and confirm their chauffeur service up to 12 hours prior to their flight’s departure. The new system, created in partnership with Vxceed Technologies, also allows guests to amend or cancel their chauffeur booking, thereby giving them greater control of their travel requirements. The new features will enable customers to receive SMS and e-mail confirmation for their scheduled pick-up. Moreover, customers can also connect with their chauffeur prior to being collected. Jamal Ahmad Al Awadhi, Etihad Airways Head of Guest Experience Commercial, said, “This new service enhancement provides a seamless transportation experience for our guests, and enables them to be in direct contact with their chauffeur at all times. It is important that our renowned Etihad experience exists across the entire customer journey, from home to the airport, from the gate to the aircraft, and then upon arrival at their destination.” The optimised chauffeur service, operated with Mercedes-Benz E-Class luxury sedans, will facilitate timely pick-up and drop-off for customers, and enable them to provide their live feedback after each trip, helping to always ensure the highest level of service in line with customers’ needs. Future system enhancements will enable Etihad Guest members to use their miles to book a private transfer for themselves within the UAE, irrespective of which cabin they are travelling in.

Emirates has launched a new daily service from Dubai to Auckland via Bali, reflecting increased interest in the attractive Indonesian island destination and improving connectivity to New Zealand. The new service offers global travellers a total of three daily services to New Zealand, complementing Emirates’ existing non-stop daily A380 service between Dubai and Auckland and its current daily A380 service between Dubai and Christchurch via Sydney. Travellers will now also enjoy a choice of three daily services between Dubai to Bali in the summer (northern hemisphere), as the new flight adds to Emirates’ two existing daily services which are currently operated by a Boeing 777-300ER in a two-class configuration. On board the inaugural flight, which was welcomed at both Denpasar and Auckland airports with a water cannon salute, was a group of special guests and media. Emirates’ new Dubai-Bali-Auckland flight provides the only year-round non-stop daily service between Auckland and Bali, giving passengers an opportunity to visit and/or stop over in one of the most popular islands in Indonesia. The airline is operating a 777-300ER on the route, offering eight seats in First, 42 seats in Business and 304 seats in Economy class, as well as 20 tonnes of belly-hold cargo capacity. The new service will also be the first Emirates Bali flight to offer passengers the airline’s award-winning First Class product. Tim Clark, President Emirates Airline, said, “We are very pleased to see the interest this new route has created since it was announced in mid-February, reflected in strong bookings from Auckland to Bali and beyond, as well as southbound from our global network.”

Abu Dhabi Airports has started its annual ‘Beat the Heat’ campaign in support of the Abu Dhabi Occupational Safety & Health Centre (OSHAD)’ Code of Practice 11.0. The informative campaign aims to boost awareness among staff and contractors on the effects of heat stress and how to safely cope with the extreme weather conditions expected during Ramadan and the succeeding months. The programme, which takes course until September, features Arabic, English, Urdu and Hindi training sessions across the Abu Dhabi International Airport, Al Ain International Airport and Al Bateen Executive Airport. The sessions detail important methods on controlling heat stress such as taking more breaks in extreme heat, drinking water frequently to avoid dehydration, being mindful of their own physical condition and that of their co-workers, and wearing light-colored, loose-fitting, breathable clothing instead of non-breathing synthetic fabrics. Campaign posters and dehydration awareness charts are displayed in each workplace, providing participants with safety bulletins that outlines mandatory requirements and educational materials needed to recognize and remedy illnesses caused by high temperatures. Heat-relieving gears such as sun hats, water bottles, and hand towels are also distributed throughout the program. Further equipping employees with the necessary knowledge, the Abu Dhabi Airports’ Environment, Health & Safety team in coordination with the Gulf Center for Aviation Studies (GCAS), the company’s training arm, has carried out heat stress train the Trainor lectures to a selected number of staff and contractors as potential health and safety instructors to drive awareness from department to department and to carry out specific practices required by each team.

Emirates will reinstate two weekly flights between Luanda and Dubai, increasing capacity to five flights per week between the two cities, starting from July 1, 2018. Customers can look forward to a daily service starting from the winter schedule. These additional flights will give passengers more travel choices and address the growing demand for connectivity on Emirates’ global network, especially to destinations in Asia, USA and Europe. The flights will be operated by a Boeing 777-300ER with eight seats in First Class, 42 in Business Class and 310 in Economy Class, with 360 seats on offer in a three-class configuration. With the increased frequency to Luanda, Emirates will offer passengers even more convenient access to other destinations in its network, including 35 destinations in the Middle East, 18 in Asia and more than 20 destinations in the Americas and Australia. In addition to an increase in passenger capacity, the new flights will offer up to 23 tonnes of cargo per flight, giving companies and merchants the opportunity to increase imports of electronic equipment, construction and pharmaceuticals products. The flight EK793 departs from Dubai at 09:55hrs and arrives in Luanda at 14:40hrs. The return flight EK794 departs from Luanda at 18:15hrs and arrives in Dubai at 05:00hrs the following day. The daily service starting in winter, flight EK 793 will depart Dubai at 10:10hrs, and arrive in Luanda at 15:10hrs. The return flight EK794 will depart Luanda at 18:15hrs and arrive in Dubai at 04:55hrs the following day.

Abu Dhabi Airports has announced the transformation plans for Al Ghazal Golf Club and Sports resort that will present a revamped new recreational offer to the residents and visitors of Abu Dhabi. The renovation and development plans will turn the emirate’s only sand golf course to a nationwide recreational sporting hub. The transformed golf destination expects to debut its enhanced look towards the mid of 2018. The property is currently undergoing cutting-edge refurbishments on five of its star facilities; 18-Hole golf course and training centre, sports recreational center, administration building, and its Food & Beverage Outlets. The finished facility will boast a prestigious sand golf course, an assortment of recreational activities for adventure seekers, locker room expansions, new gaming facilities, and improved continental dinning venues. Al Ghazal Golf Club and Sports enjoys a strategic location lying in close proximity to the Abu Dhabi International Airport and some of the most sought-after attractions of the Emirate that includes the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, Ferrari World, Yas Island. Commenting on this development, Saoud Al Shamsi, Acting Chief Commercial Officer at Abu Dhabi Airports, said, “Al Ghazal Golf Club and Sports will be the most luxurious and exciting resort for sport lovers and families seeking an adventurous escape, or to unwind after a long day of work. This renovation project has been designed to create a wider golf club membership that ultimately establishes a big and prominent Al Ghazal Community. In line with its vision and values, Al Ghazal Golf Club & Sports Resort will be a leader of innovation, hospitality and quality by the end of 2018”.

Emirates will be operating 24 extra flights to Jeddah during the busy Umrah season, adding more than 10,000 additional seats between Dubai and Jeddah from June 12-24. The additional flights will be serviced by the Boeing 777-300ER. Emirates’ additional flights will help accommodate more convenient travel through Dubai during the Umrah season, which starts in Ramadan and concludes in July. These services will run in parallel with Emirates’ regularly scheduled services to Jeddah, which includes three daily flights. The additional services can be accessed by travellers holding a valid Umrah visa. Adil Al Ghaith, Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations for Gulf, Middle East and Iran said, “Performing Umrah during the month of Ramadan is a significant experience for Muslims and Emirates is helping to make the journey more seamless through convenient connections for the thousands of pilgrims looking to travel during this time. We thank the Saudi Arabian government and authorities for their support to introduce these extra frequencies during Umrah season.” Onboard, Emirates’ award-winning ice system features special religious programming as well as popular regional entertainment options including new drama series. The airline’s diverse content available on board with up to 3,500 channels of entertainment includes 238 Arabic channels featuring movies, TV, music and audio. This year, top destinations where Emirates is expecting Umrah travellers to come from are Pakistan, North Africa, the United States, the UK and South Africa.

Effective October 28, 2018, Etihad Airways will introduce a 299-seat next-generation Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner on its daily mid-morning EY653/EY654 schedule from Abu Dhabi to Cairo. Etihad Airways will operate four daily services to the Egyptian capital, offering greater choice and optimised timings to benefit business and leisure customers travelling point-to-point between the two cities. The convenient schedules also provide seamless East-bound connections through Abu Dhabi onto the airline’s network to the Gulf, Indian subcontinent, North and Southeast Asia and Australia. Mohammad Al Bulooki, Executive Vice President Commercial, Etihad Airways said, “Etihad Airways has been serving Cairo since 2004 and today it is one of the largest point-to-point markets on our global network, bolstered by the hugely important historic, economic, and cultural ties existing between the UAE and Egypt. The introduction of the state-of-the-art 787 Dreamliner on the popular morning service from Abu Dhabi will provide guests with the latest innovation and technology, award-winning cabins, genuine hospitality and greater choice.” In April 2018, Etihad Airways and EGYPTAIR expanded their codeshare partnership from Abu Dhabi and Cairo to include several African destinations served by the Egyptian flag-carrier from its Cairo hub, including Ndjamena in Chad, Khartoum in Sudan, Entebbe in Uganda, and Dar es Salaam in Tanzania, and subject to government approvals, Abuja and Kano in Nigeria, and Asmara in Eritrea.

Emirates celebrated the inaugural flight of its new daily service from Dubai (DXB) to London Stansted (STN). The aircraft deployed on the route is Emirates’ new three-class Boeing 777-300ER, featuring its state-of-the-art, fully-enclosed private suites in First Class, and refreshed Business and Economy Class cabins. The aircraft also sports newly-designed seats and upgraded in-flight entertainment systems in all cabins.  To celebrate the airline’s arrival to the airport, Emirates and Stansted airport held a launch event for local dignitaries and stakeholders, hosted by Hubert Frach, Emirates Divisional Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations – West and Richard Jewsbury, Divisional Vice President, UK, alongside Ken O’Toole, CEO, Stansted Airport. “We decided to add London Stansted to our network because we saw an opportunity to directly connect the local community with some of the world’s most popular leisure and business destinations. Previously, London’s north east and the wider 7.5 million people that live within Stansted’s catchment areas had to travel into the city to access airports with global reach. Now, this daily flight to Dubai connects passengers seamlessly to Emirates points across the Middle East, Africa, Asia and Australasia,” said Frach. The new gateway is the seventh UK airport that Emirates operates out of in the UK, with Edinburgh to follow in October.

Emirates will start a third daily service between Moscow’s Domodedovo (DME) Airport and Dubai, commencing on October 25, 2018. Emirates has been serving the Russian market since 2003. Demand for travel has grown significantly over recent years, leading to the airline’s launch of third flight to Moscow. 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 310 spacious seats in Economy. This service will cater for leisure and business passengers, providing daily links for international tourism and trade opportunities both inbound and outbound. The flight EK174 will depart Domodedovo at 1040hrs and arrive in Dubai at 1655hrs, while the return flight EK173 will depart Dubai at 0330hrs and arrive in Moscow at 0750hrs. The new flight allows for seamless connectivity to Moscow from several popular destinations in Emirates’ and flydubai’s combined route network, including Bali, Bangkok, Colombo, Hong Kong, Johannesburg, Kathmandu, Kuala Lumpur, Maldives, Mauritius and Singapore. The new Emirates flight from Domodedovo airport is also timed to connect conveniently with a wide network of domestic flights operated by Emirates codeshare partner in Russia – S7 Airlines. Emirates’ commitment to Moscow Domodedovo airport is backed by airport’s investment in improving the infrastructure for the passengers.

Dubai Airports and Dubai Cares announced a record result from the first year of their three-year partnership raising AED 1,505,329 in support of Dubai Cares’ Education in Emergencies programmes which offer support to children affected by conflict and natural disasters in countries like Lebanon, Iraq and Nepal, thus enabling them catch up with their education. “Last year we vowed to double our annual contribution from 640,000 AED to 1.3 million AED and are thrilled to have surpassed that goal,” said Paul Griffiths, CEO of Dubai Airports. “We’re grateful to our customers for their generous donations and to Dubai Cares for their tireless efforts to direct these funds towards supporting thousands of children and young people who currently don’t have access to quality education.” His Excellency Tariq Al Gurg, Chief Executive Officer at Dubai Cares said, “We are honoured to have partnered with Dubai Airports and are happy to witness such tremendous success in the first year. The generous contribution by travellers through the airport and visitors to Dubai Airports’ website will certainly help us expand the scope of our efforts to reach children and young people in developing countries, especially those affected by conflict, epidemics and natural disasters. With the continuous involvement and commitment of farsighted organisations such as Dubai Airports, we will continue to make successful advances in shaping the global education agenda.”