Category Archives: Aviation

Emirates will increase the frequency of flights between Dubai and Khartoum from five to seven a week starting 8 August 2017. The additional services will be realised by Boeing 777, offering customers a choice of cabins with 8 luxurious private suites in First Class, 42 lie-flat seats in Business Class and 304 seats with plenty of room to relax in Economy Class. Offering a total of over 700 additional seats each way per week, the two new flights will enhance connectivity between a number of popular cities in the Middle East, Asia and Americas, some of them being Kuwait, Beijing, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Shanghai, Seoul, Mumbai, New York and Washington DC.

Passenger traffic grew by 3 per cent year on year at Sharjah International Airport during the last quarter, as the airport handled 2.75 million passengers during April, May and June, compared with 2.66 million during the same period of 2016. April saw the maximum increase, which was of 6 per cent. Aircraft movements at the airport also increased by 3 percent this quarter, with the total of scheduled and non-scheduled movements in Q2 2017 rising to 18,801, compared with 18,183 in Q2 2016. Of the different airlines playing a role in this rise, Air Arabia, the largest low-cost carrier operator in the Middle East and North Africa, has had a prominent role. It launched a number of new services from its Sharjah hub this year, including permanent services to Batumi in Georgia, Baku in Azarbajian, Somaliland’s capital Hargeisa and Sohar in Oman. The airline also launched a summer-special non-stop service to the Turkish port city of Trabzon.

Dubai-based airlines, Emirates and flydubai, unveiled an extensive partnership recently that says the two airlines have joined hands to offer customers unmatched travel options and facilities. Both airlines will continue to be managed independently but will leverage each other’s network to scale up their operations and accelerate growth. Emirates today has a wide-body fleet of 259 aircraft, flying to 157 destinations (including 16 cargo-only points). flydubai operates 58 new-generation Boeing 737 aircraft to 95 destinations. The current combined network comprises 216 unique destination points. This latest partnership includes not only code-sharing, but also integrated network collaboration with coordinated scheduling. The new model will give flydubai customers seamless connectivity to Emirates’ worldwide destinations spanning six continents. For Emirates’ customers, it opens up flydubai’s robust regional network. The two airlines will also further develop their hub at Dubai International, aligning their systems and operations to ensure a seamless travel experience through the ultra-modern airport.

Etihad Holidays has launched operations in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain to provide a wide choice of holiday package options to travellers in the four countries. The move follows the successful introduction of Etihad Airways’ holiday division in the UAE, UK, Germany, India and North America. Launched in 2004, Etihad Holidays offers dynamically packaged holidays in innumerable countries at exceptional rates. The packages enable travellers to get their hotel, rental car and tours and activities booked along with their flight tickets in Etihad Airways or any of its partner airlines.  Moreover, guests can design their dream holidays from the comfort of their own home on the Etihad Holidays website and avail tailor-made packages to suit their individual needs. A team of travel professionals is only a phone call away for assistance and provides a Concierge Service for the discerning travellers.

Emirates has announced that effective October 2017, it will introduce its A380 carrier on the double daily service between Dubai and Moscow. It is with the purpose of boosting the seat capacity on this route. This aircraft upgauge sees an increase of over 1,000 seats per week. Come October and flights EK131/132 and EK133/134 will be operated by Airbus A380, in a three-class configuration, with 14 Private Suites in First Class, 76 flat-bed seats in Business Class and 427 comfortable seats in Economy Class. In all cabins, passengers will enjoy access to Wi-Fi and over 2500 channels of films, music and games, more than 60 in Russian, through ice Digital Widescreen, Emirates’ award-winning inflight entertainment system

Etihad Airways will be adding year-round flights between Abu Dhabi and both Cairo and Lagos later this year to cater to the growing demand of travel on these routes. A fifth daily scheduled service will be introduced on the Cairo route, effective October 1, 2017, taking the frequency to the Egyptian capital up from 28 to 35 flights a week. This service will include mid-morning departure from Abu Dhabi and return from Cairo in the afternoon and will also provide convenient connections between Abu Dhabi and key cities in North and South Asia, including Beijing, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur. For Nigeria’s commercial capital of Lagos, Etihad is launching a new Saturday flight from December 2, 2017, which will increase the frequency of its services on the route from four to five each week. The flight will leave from Abu Dhabi early morning and return from Lagos in mid-morning. This service will also provide convenient connections to cities like Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Mumbai and Kuala Lumpur in the Asian continent.

Kuwaiti airline Jazeera Airways recently launched a twice weekly service to Azerbaijan’s capital city, Baku. The inaugural flight (Airbus A320) landed at the Baku airport earlier this week and was received by the customary water arch. Being one of the first to provide non-stop flights of extended frequency to this emerging holiday destination, Jazeera Airways will offer a frequency of two flights every week, on Mondays and Fridays, taking off from Kuwait at 09:00 am and arriving at Baku at 12:10 pm and then departing from Baku at 13:10 pm on the same day and landing in the home country at 14:25 pm.

Etihad Holidays has launched operations in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain to provide a wide choice of package holiday options to travellers in the four countries. The move follows the successful introduction of Etihad Airways’ holiday division in the UAE, UK, Germany, India and North America. Launched in 2004, Etihad Holidays offers dynamically packaged holidays at exceptional rates at many of the world’s leading hotels. Guests can now book their flights with Etihad Airways and its partner airlines together with their hotel, rental car, tours and activities, with real-time availability, at the best available prices.  From family, beach and luxury holidays to sporting breaks, fly drives and city stays, the choices to destinations across Europe, the Americas, Asia, Australia, Africa and across the Middle East are endless. Guests can design their dream holiday from the comfort of their own home on the Etihad Holidays website and avail tailor-made packages to suit their individual needs. A team of travel professionals is only a phone call away for assistance and provides a Concierge Service for the discerning travellers. The Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Stopover Programme can be combined with any Etihad Holidays package, allowing guests to break their journey in Abu Dhabi and take the advantage of the special 2-for-1 night accommodation offers in the capital city.

Etihad Airways has recently replaced the three-class Boeing 777-300ER for the overnight service between Abu Dhabi and Paris with an Airbus A380 aircraft. Right now it has been done to meet the increased seasonal demand between July 1, 2017 to October 28, 2017 and then between December 15, 2017 to February 15, 2018. However, from March 15, 2018, the aircraft will be run permanently on this route. Mohammad Al Bulooki, Executive Vice President Commercial, Etihad Airways, said, “Paris is one of Etihad Airways’ most sought-after destinations, popular with both leisure and business flyers alike. The global capital of style and gastronomy deserves us to fly our flagship product to town, offering world-leading and award-winning in-flight hospitality experiences in the skies.

Dubai International Airport welcomed 6.8 million customers during May, according to the monthly traffic report issued by operator Dubai Airports. In May 2017, passenger numbers at DXB rose by 1.9 per cent to 6,850,052 compared to 6,721,995 recorded in May 2016. During the first five months of 2017, DXB welcomed 36,969,594 passengers, a year-on-year growth of 6.7 per cent compared to 34,649,748 passengers recorded during the same period last year. “Considering that we’ve had some record breaking months earlier in the year, including the rush of travellers during the summer holiday and Eid break last week, we are looking forward to a robust growth in the first half,” said Paul Griffiths, CEO, Dubai Airports.