Tag Archives: UAE

Two new Finland Visa Application Centres have been launched in Abu Dhabi and Dubai by the Embassy of Finland in Abu Dhabi, enabling applicants to submit visa applications and enrol for biometrics. The Abu Dhabi centre, centrally located at Shining Tower on Mubarak Bin Mohammed Street, was inaugurated by H E Riitta Swan, Ambassador of Finland to the United Arab Emirates on November 16. The centre in Dubai is located at the Wafi Mall. Services at the new centres are designed to facilitate quicker and more streamlined visa application submission processes. For added convenience to applicants, the centres will also provide travellers to Finland with a range of optional services ranging from Premium Lounge services to doorstep courier return-delivery of their processed passports.

flydubai announced a commitment of US$27 billion order for 225 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft to support the growth of its fleet. This is the third aircraft order placed by the airline with Boeing in its eight-year history. The new aircraft order will support its continued expansion within a geographic area that is home to 2.5 billion people. The airline, by the end of the year, will have a fleet of 61 next-generation Boeing 737-800 aircraft and Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft. In addition, there is a pipeline of 70 aircraft due for delivery by 2023. The announcement will bring the total number of aircraft to 320.

The world’s largest outsourcing and technology services, VFS Global specialist for governments and diplomatic missions worldwide, conducted the 4th global edition of its annual innovation workshop ‘iConnect’ for the outsourced government services industry in Dubai. The event brought together 129 delegates from 55 countries to discuss the most significant technology trends and cutting-edge solutions offered by VFS Global in visa, consular and citizen services. The delegates were predominantly senior officials from the central government ministries and from various embassies and consulates in the UAE. At the workshop, governments and private stakeholders discussed the importance of cyber-security in in the context of the recent escalation in cyber-attacks worldwide. Guest speakers, domain experts and global leaders in cyber security, highlighted potential risks and discussed measures to mitigate the risks. The speakers at iConnect spoke about how customers today wanted easy access to information and convenient service fulfillment. The growing relevance of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to transform customer experience was also a topic of discussion, with technology now making inroads into various sectors from assisting in travel across airlines to enhancing the customer experience.

Emirates Flight Training Academy, the state-of-the-art facility for training initio pilots was officially inaugurated by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai during the Dubai Airshow. Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive, Emirates Airline and Group said, “The Emirates Flight Training Academy is designed to be one of the most advanced flight training facilities not just in the Middle East region, but in the entire world. This is the only academy in the world that provides complete integration of flight training, ground school, accommodation and recreation under one roof. Students will not only get the best training but will be able to enjoy comfortable living standards while undergoing training.” Located in Dubai South, the academy has been established by Emirates to qualify UAE nationals and international students. The Academy will combine cutting-edge learning technologies and a modern fleet of training aircraft to train cadets with no previous knowledge of flying.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, Ruler of Dubai joined officials from Emirates airline and Boeing to witness the signing of a US$15.1 billion commitment to purchase 40 Boeing 787-10 Dreamliners. Emirates is already the world’s largest Boeing 777 operator and the airline will be first to receive the new 777X in 2020. Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive, Emirates airline, said, “Emirates’ orders today will be delivered from 2022, taking the airline well into the 2030s. Some of these will be replacements so that we maintain a young and efficient fleet, and others will power our future network growth. Today’s announcement also speaks to our confidence in the future of aviation in the UAE and the region.” The 787-10 Dreamliner is the newest and longest member of the super-efficient 787 family. Boeing says it offers 10 per cent better fuel and emissions than competitive aircraft in the sector.

Emirates celebrated the milestone delivery of its 100th Airbus A380 aircraft at a special ceremony with Airbus at the manufacturer’s delivery centre in Hamburg. Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, Emirates’ Chairman and Chief Executive officiated the ceremony. Ahmed said, “This is a tremendous moment for Emirates, for Airbus and our many partners involved in the A380 programme. There is no doubt that the A380 has had a big positive impact on aerospace manufacturing and the broader aviation industry, supporting hundreds of thousands of jobs and stimulating innovation and new product development in many related areas such as ground handling, catering, airport facilities and cabin products, to name a few.” The unique livery will feature a customised decal of UAE’s founding father Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, marking the airline’s first initiative for the ‘Year of Zayed’, which commences in 2018, coinciding with the centennial of the birth of Zayed. A total of ten Emirates aircraft, five Airbus A380s and five Boeing 777-300ERs will carry the special livery. The aircraft will carry the distinctive decal of HH Sheikh Zayed beginning in November 2017 and throughout 2018.

As part of its efforts to make travel simple for its customers, Cleartrip, a leading online travel company in the Middle East, announced the integration of Apple Pay on its mobile application. With the launch of Apple’s digital wallet in the UAE, Cleartrip customers can now look forward to a quicker and safer way to check out on the Cleartrip mobile app. Apple Pay supports all devices running iOS 11 and works with iPhone SE, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus and later and Apple Watch. “As the preferred travel partner of consumers in the UAE as well as the wider region, we are dedicated to building industry-leading travel solutions. Addressing our customers’ needs, like easy payment options, is at the heart of why we launched Apple Pay on the Cleartrip app,” said Stuart Crighton, Founder & CEO of Cleartrip. Customers using Apple Pay to purchase on the Cleartrip iOS app will benefit from an instant discount of AED 100 on flights. Apple rolled out Apple Pay in the UAE from October 24, 2017 in a move that is expected to revolutionise the country’s digital economy.

Etihad Airways is now providing its customers Apple Pay, transforming mobile payments with a fast, secure and convenient way to pay for flights and travel. Available on the Etihad Airways mobile app, Apple Pay allows customers, for the first time in the UAE, to pay securely with just a touch of a finger. Etihad Airways’ customers can now buy flights and other products such as ‘Extra Legroom Seats’, ‘Preferred Seats’ and excess baggage with their iPhone or iPad by simply touching a button. Each transaction is authorised with a one-time unique dynamic security code. Justin Warby, Vice President Digital Strategy and Innovation, Etihad Airways, said, “We are proud to partner with Apple Pay to bring the latest mobile payment and technology innovations to our guests in the UAE and around the world. We were able to quickly adjust the release cycle of our mobile app to ensure we coincided our launch with Apple in the UAE.” Apple Pay is easy to set up and users will continue to receive all of the rewards and benefits offered by credit and debit cards.

The first edition of the Travel Tech ME Congress concluded at Marriot Al Jaddaf in Dubai, UAE. The event gathered 100 technology experts, travel agents, airline operators and airport officials to provide a forum of exchange on the current technologies in tourism. Organised by Verve Management, the two-day congress started with Diego Lofeudo, Director of Business Unit, Corporate, Yas Marina Circuit, UAE who made the official welcome address. Conference Chairman, Albert Fernando, COO, Travelwings opened day two of Travel Tech ME Congress, where he said, “A great initiative for Verve Management, that has helped tourism stakeholders better understand and share future trends in travel technology. The industry looks forward to the congress next year, bringing in even more experts in travel technology.”Several presentations over two days shed light on the latest innovations happening across the world in terms of travel and tourism. Albert Dias, Co-founder & CTO, Musafir discussed the importance of sub-second search speed and its effect on a travelers’ decision-making process.Juan Iván Martín, Head of Innovation, FDS, from IATA discussed travel blockchain, the introduction of the IATA coin as payment methods and how hackathons such as the IATA-NDC Hackathon-2016 in Dubai have helped the airline industry as well as the hotel and travel industries by introducing innovative ideas, and applications that have been implemented and increased revenue in the travel and tourism industry in the region. From blockchain, IATA coins being implemented, disruption, the importance of sub-second search speed, web technologies challenging today’s relevance and the future existence of mobile apps. The two-day conference was concluded with a panel discussion of the lessons learned and the way forward, on the evolution in the hotel distribution system.

Uber, in partnership with Dubai Taxi Corporation launched UberONE. Around 50 brand new premium electric cars will be added to the Uber app, giving riders across Dubai the chance to request the fully-electric, smart and sustainable transport option at the touch of a button. Starting from October 10, riders will be able to choose from a dedicated fleet of electric vehicles exclusively via the ‘UberONE’ option on the Uber app. The joint initiative comes as part of Dubai Taxi Corporation and Uber’s commitment to helping Dubai become the smartest city in the world in support of the Green Economy for Sustainable Development Initiative. Chris Free, General Manager for Uber, UAE said, “At Uber we are constantly innovating our offering and looking for ways to provide new and progressive experiences at the push of a button. We are tremendously excited to be the exclusive ride-hailing partner for the clean vehicle technology to deliver our driver-partners and riders with more efficient, less-polluting mobility. We will continue to work hand in hand with Dubai Taxi Corporation to bring innovative infrastructural solutions to Dubai and grow the city’s smart mobility ecosystem.”