Category Archives: Aviation

Skyscanner announced the launch of the Arabic language on desktop and mobile web. In an effort to offer travellers in the Middle East a more localised and user-friendly experience, Skyscanner has rolled out the Arabic language offering across all domains, including UAE and Saudi Arabia. Travellers visiting Skyscanner on desktop, mobile web or via the app will now be able to select Arabic as a language option to access more localised content, including local currency and a better user experience when linking to partner sites to complete their travel bookings. According to a recent YouGov survey, commissioned by Reed Exhibitions, ahead of Arabian Travel Market 2021, the money that Middle East travellers spend on international leisure travel will begin to exceed 2019 levels in as little as three years. “We’re pleased to be able to offer travellers in the Middle East a far more relevant experience on desktop, allowing them to plan and book travel in their local language and currency,” said Gavin Harris, Director of Strategic Partnerships, Skyscanner. “Arabic is one of the 5th most spoken languages in the world and outbound travel from the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia accounts for a significant proportion of the total travel market. We previously launched the Skyscanner app in Arabic to great success, so it was a logical next step to bring the localised experience to desktop users too. We’re excited about the opportunity this will afford our partners in the region as well.”  

flydubai has added Batumi to its seasonal summer schedule. The carrier, which currently operates to Tbilisi International Airport (TBS) in Georgia, will also operate a three times weekly service to Batumi International Airport (BUS) from 12 May until 01 September. Commenting on the announcement, Jeyhun Efendi, Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations and E-commerce at flydubai, added, “we are pleased to relaunch our operations to Batumi which has been a popular summer destination for our passengers in previous years. We remain focused on adding more options for travel this summer with the expectation that international travel restrictions will have eased. Flights are available to book on flydubai.com. In addition, passengers will have the option to choose full packages from holidays by flydubai.” Batumi offers passengers wishing to travel this summer a perfect escape with popular seaside resorts, beautiful mountain vistas and a mild climate. Known as the ‘Pearl of the Black Sea’, Batumi is the second largest city in Georgia, located in the country’s southwest region. Batumi is a popular tourist destination known for its beaches, restaurants, cafés, dancing fountains and its popular Ferris Wheel.  

Guests travelling with Etihad Airways from now until May 31 from Abu Dhabi to Chicago, New York, Washington and Toronto, will be the first to trial the IATA Travel Pass app to easily manage their travel health credentials. Mohammad Al Bulooki, Chief Operating Officer, Etihad Aviation Group, said, “With the dynamically changing health requirements for travel, Etihad believes that a digital health passport solution will provide additional clarity and ease for travellers. Etihad has partnered with IATA so that together, a globally unified approach to a travel pass can be simplified to make travel easier once governments decide what regulations are required to cross borders in either direction.” To participate in the trial, guests simply download the IATA Travel Pass app from the Apple App Store and book an appointment with Life Diagnostics at Sultan Bin Zayed the First Street or BioGenix Labs at Masdar City. At the clinic, guests inform reception they are participating in the IATA Travel Pass trial and should be ready to show their passport and mobile device with the IATA Travel Pass app downloaded. Once the test result is ready, travellers will be able to view it on both the IATA Travel Pass app and through the testing clinic’s own digital platform. “Etihad Airways trial of IATA Travel Pass will help build confidence among governments and travellers that digital health apps can safely, securely and conveniently help restart aviation. The app gives travellers a one-stop-shop to help them comply with the new rules for travel, and for governments complete assurance in the identity of the passenger and the authenticity of the travel credentials being presented,” said Nick Careen, IATA Senior Vice President for Airport, Passenger, …

Global Village has revealed that the recently launched Etihad Baggage Claim Challenge has been welcomed with a positive reception by enthusiastic guests. The park partnered with Etihad Airways to provide guests with a unique opportunity to travel the world. Since its launch on Sunday, April 4th, the unique promotion has captured the imagination of those visiting the destination, with hundreds of participants entering daily for the chance to win. As the latest Silver Jubilee Season activation, the Global Village guest that guesses the 5-digit combination code of the large locked travel trunk located in the Park will receive one million Etihad Guest Miles, AED 25,000 cash for their travels, and AED 25,000 to shop at Global Village as they prepare for the trip of a lifetime. Every few days, a number is being released until a winner cracks the code, and these are being published on various channels including the Etihad Guest website (www.EtihadGuest.com) and mobile app, Arabian Radio Network stations, and Global Village Instagram channel and mobile app. Two of the five numbers have already been revealed and with more digits set to be published soon, guests are urged to follow Global Village social media platforms and download the app to increase their chances of winning.  This exciting activation is part of the Ramadan Nights program where guests can enjoy time with friends and family every evening from 6pm until 2am.

SriLankan Airlines is strengthening its presence in the North American and European markets through the expansion of its existing codeshare agreement with Qatar Airways, with additional connections to serve various cities in these regions. This codeshare would expand across 10 cities in 06 countries covering Canada, Hungary, Azerbaijan, Scotland, Ukraine, and Turkey. Vipula Gunatilleka, Chief Executive Officer of SriLankan Airlines said, “The expansion of our partnership with Qatar Airways is an important element in SriLankan’s ongoing initiatives to provide seamless connectivity for our valued passengers across a wide range of destinations, apart from increasing the number of cities that we fly to.” Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker, said, “The expansion of codeshare cooperation between Qatar Airways and SriLankan Airlines is a natural next step in the strengthening of our close partnership. We look forward to working closely with SriLankan Airlines to offer passengers more flexible travel options via the Best Airport in the Middle East, Hamad International Airport.”

flydubai has added two seasonal summer routes for passengers from Dubai and across the region. The carrier, which operates to Sabiha Gokcen International Airport in Turkey, will also operate to Milas-Bodrum Airport (BJV) and Trabzon Airport (TZX).  Flights to Bodrum, the main gateway to the Turkish Riviera, will operate twice a week from 04 June until 01 September. Trabzon, a popular city on the Black Sea coast of northeastern Turkey, will be served with three weekly flights from 13 May until 01 September. Commenting on the announcement, Jeyhun Efendi, Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations and E-commerce at flydubai, added, “We recognise that since the pandemic it has not been possible for our customers to travel as much as they would have liked. Adding Bodrum and Trabzon to our seasonal schedule will provide passengers with more options to travel this summer. We have steadily grown our network to more than 75 destinations and we will continue to launch flights to more destinations in the region as restrictions ease.  Flights are available to book on flydubai.com.” This summer will see the number of destinations on flydubai’s network reach 78 points. This includes seven points in Russia as well as flights to popular destinations including Baku, Bucharest, Colombo, Maldives, Minsk, Tbilisi, Tel Aviv, Tirana and Zanzibar.

Emirates is offering travellers from the UAE the chance to book their long-awaited Eid or summer getaway to the Maldives, with fares starting from AED 3,495 in Economy Class, and AED 8,555 in Business Class. The offer is valid for bookings made starting today until 25 April 2021 for travel until 31 July 2021. Travellers can also plan their ideal Maldivian getaway with Emirates Holidays, starting from AED 4,389 per person for a three night stay package at a four star hotel. Emirates currently offers 28 convenient weekly flights to the Maldives. The Maldives has become an incredibly popular destination among for UAE travelers for a long weekend break or extended holiday with convenient, short flight timings, idyllic weather, crystal blue waters and pristine beaches. Its private island resorts offer unique experiences catering to almost every type of traveler, from world-class water sports and diving, relaxing spa experiences, and much more, helping visitors create unforgettable memories. The Maldives has remained open for tourists since July of last year, and across all of its private island resorts, has implemented COVID-19 health and safety measures to ensure the safety and wellbeing of visitors. Guests travelling to the Maldives can enjoy a stress-free journey as hotels across the islands offer convenient PCR testing within the resorts ahead of their return flight. Additionally, travelers to the Maldives can enjoy privacy and seclusion through its extensive range of villa-style accommodation options with private pools. Emirates remains focused on taking the stress out of travel, and has led the industry in protecting the health of its customers to ensure a feeling of safety and confidence when deciding to fly.  Emirates customers travel with the assurance that …

Oman Air resumed flights to Riyadh KSA, operating 4 flights per week. Flights to Dammam KSA resumed on 28 March 2021, operating 4 flights per week. The airline will maintain its comprehensive safety program throughout all elements of the travel journey to ensure that guests fly confidently. Masks are required when guests are onboard the aircraft and in Oman’s airports. Distancing is maintained while guests board and exit the aircraft, which are carefully cleaned after each flight and at the end of every day. Cabin crew all wear a full set of personal protective equipment, meal service has been modified to further ensure safety, and a number of other measures have been implemented to ensure that the airline’s guests and crew are safe at all times. Guests who are planning to travel to Muscat should visit the Civil Aviation Authority website, caa.gov.om, to ensure they are prepared to comply with requirements to enter the Sultanate. Guests travelling to KSA should ensure they are aware of official requirements to enter or transit through the country. Guests departing from Oman should also ensure that they are aware of all pre-departure requirements and requirements during their flights, which are provided at omanair.com.

Oman Air announced its expanded codeshare cooperation with Qatar Airways offers Oman Air guests the flexibility to fly to 10 destinations in the USA with the ease and convenience offered by connecting flights in Doha, Qatar. Now within easier reach from Muscat are New York (JFK), Houston (IAH), Chicago (ORD), Philadelphia (PHL), Los Angeles (LAX), Miami (MIA), Dallas (DFW), Boston (BOS), San Francisco (SFO), and Washington, D.C. (IAD). Eng. Abdulaziz Al Raisi, Chief Executive Officer, Oman Air commented on Oman Air’s growing commercial cooperation with Qatar Airways as a win-win for both carriers, offering greater flexibility and seamless connectivity for business and leisure travellers flying between Muscat and the USA, adding, “Our enhanced codeshare agreement with Qatar Airways, an airline with remarkable reach and reputation around the world, facilitates travel between Oman and some of the most celebrated cities in the US while at the same time offering travellers from North America an easy way to connect to Oman’s breathtaking beauty, rich and diverse culture, and authentic hospitality.”

Cebu Pacific reaffirms its full commitment to speed up its digital transformation, in line with its staunch resolve to make travel more convenient and accessible amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. CEB has taken great strides in continuously improving overall customer experience by enhancing its online booking, check-in, manage booking, as well as CEB’s virtual assistant named ‘Charlie the chatbot’. The carrier has begun ramping-up its customer-first initiatives through digital innovation in 2017—making CEB one of the first airlines in Asia to invest in an integrated facility and technology for social intelligence and customer engagement. “We are glad to have started our digital transformation journey even before the pandemic because we have come to rely on it in this new normal environment. We continue to prioritise the safety and convenience of our passengers, that is why we have accelerated our digital efforts to support contactless and self-service processes,” said Candice Iyog, Vice President for Marketing and Customer Experience, CEB. This has spurred CEB ahead of everyone else in the Philippine aviation sector in terms of keeping pace with necessary changes when the COVID-19 pandemic struck. The vital digital transformations and systems it had adopted early on—including bolstering its social media channels manned by the CEB Customer Care Agents—helped in addressing passengers’ needs amidst the pandemic. Iyog said, “Rest assured Charlie, along with our Customer Care team, are online 24/7 to assist everyone. We continue to enhance existing processes as we remain committed to empowering customers and ensuring access to the information they need anytime, anywhere, without having to call the hotline or go to a ticketing office.”