Transport Emirates to resume Nigeria service from October Emirates will restart services to Nigeria from October 1, after suspending flights on the route for almost two years. The Dubai airline will operate a daily service to Lagos, Nigeria’s largest city. “We are excited to resume our services to Nigeria,” said Adnan Kazim, deputy president and chief commercial officer, Emirates. “We thank the Nigerian government for their partnership and support in re-establishing this […] May 17, 2024
Tourism Passenger numbers rise 26% in Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia said this week that its total number of air passengers rose 26 percent to 112 million in 2023. This includes a 46 percent rise in the total number of international travellers to 61 million. The number means the kingdom’s airports are approaching full capacity, which is 116 million passengers a year, including 45 […] May 16, 2024
Analysis Aviation Airport chiefs size up ways to meet GCC airspace demand The annual number of air travellers to and from the Middle East is projected to pass the half-billion mark next year, meaning aviation authorities need to both expand and streamline use of available airspace, senior GCC airport chiefs have told AGBI. Oman is in talks with a neighbouring Gulf state to unlock a new air […] May 16, 2024
Aviation Qatar Airways urges Boeing and Airbus to address delays The head of state-run Qatar Airways has urged Airbus and Boeing to address supply chain issues to prevent airlines from “bleeding”. “I know they are under so much pressure when it comes to the supply chain market,” Reuters reported, quoting Badr Mohammed Al Meer speech at the Qatar Economic Forum in Doha. Airbus and Boeing need to […] May 16, 2024
Aviation UAE wealth fund in $4bn bid to privatise Malaysian airport A consortium that includes the UAE’s Abu Dhabi Investment Authority has announced a voluntary offer to acquire all the shares in Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad (MAHB) for nearly $4 billion. The other consortium partners are Malaysian government-backed Khazanah Nasional and the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) and New York-headquartered Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP). Upon completion of the offer, Khazanah ownership stake in MAHB […] May 16, 2024
Aviation Qatar and Rwanda to open airport in ‘heart of Africa’ by 2028 Qatar Airways and RwandAir will open a major international airport in Rwanda’s capital Kigali by 2028, the airlines said this week. The Qatari flag carrier has also announced plans to take a stake in a southern African airline to cement its expansion plans on the continent. RwandAir and Qatar Airways, which have a code-sharing agreement, […] May 15, 2024
Opinion Aviation Direct domestic flights are dull but critical Even though at-home routes are not particularly attractive, they can and do generate cash May 14, 2024
Aviation Dnata CEO confident of victory in Rome airport case The group CEO of Dnata, the Dubai-based global air and travel services provider, is “very confident” the company will soon begin operations in Rome. “We’re certainly planning to be operating this year,” Steve Allen told AGBI at a media event on Tuesday, referring to an appeal ruling on the decision to award ground-handling contracts due […] May 14, 2024
Transport Air Arabia profit falls 22% amid fuel and currency woes UAE carrier Air Arabia reported a 22 percent decline in net profit for the first quarter of 2024 compared with the previous year. It cited challenges such as fuel price fluctuations, currency volatility and a shift in seasonality as a result of Ramadan. The low-cost carrier reported earnings of AED266 million ($71 million) for the first three months of […] May 14, 2024
Aviation Dubai to receive $1bn dividend after record Emirates profits Emirates Group will pay more than $1 billion in dividends to its owner, the Investment Corporation of Dubai sovereign wealth fund, after it announced record profits of just over $5 billion for the year. The holding group includes Dubai-based flag carrier Emirates and aircraft and airport services company Dnata. It repaid $596 million from the […] May 13, 2024
Tourism Saudia allocates 1.2m seats for Hajj pilgrims Saudia, the national flag carrier of Saudi Arabia, has allocated more than 1.2 million seats for the 2024 Hajj Season across its fleet of over 150 aircraft. The operational period for the carrier during this year’s Hajj will span 74 days, starting from May 9, encompassing both inbound and outbound stages. Saudia Group, one of […] May 10, 2024
Aviation Etihad Q1 profit jumps nine-fold on 41% traffic growth Etihad Airways’ net profit surged 792 percent to AED526 million ($143 million) in the first quarter, from AED59 million a year ago, amid strong growth in passenger revenue and reduced net finance costs. Total revenue at the UAE flag carrier increased 21 percent year on year to nearly AED6 billion, driven by increased network capacity and passenger numbers. […] May 10, 2024
Analysis Aviation Qatar dazzles as Middle East aviation picks up pace The Middle East’s aviation sector is growing at twice the global rate and is expected to offer 257 million passenger seats this year, according to a new report. Not so long ago major airlines viewed the Middle East as a place to get cheap fuel on their way from Europe to South East Asia. Now […] May 8, 2024
Aviation Riyadh Air expands with fleet of narrowbody jets The new Saudi airline Riyadh Air will announce a fleet of narrowbody jets later this year for a first-phase expansion that will eventually include a new terminal to meet Saudi tourism ambitions. Although its widebody aircraft come from the troubled manufacturer Boeing, Riyadh Air declined to say if the latest narrowbody orders would be from […] May 8, 2024
Aviation Emirates chairman ‘not happy’ with Boeing delays Emirates chairman Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum has called on Boeing’s new management to address technical issues with the 777X widebody aircraft as a matter of urgency, admitting that he was “not happy” with the US planemaker. The flight operator has an order for 205 of the jets which were originally due to be […] May 8, 2024
Aviation Boeing’s ‘negative issues’ are top concern for FlyDubai CEO Escalating regional tensions and recent floods in Dubai have “not especially” affected FlyDubai’s operations, but the low-cost airline’s chief executive said he was closely monitoring US plane maker Boeing’s response to a string of safety scandals. “We are definitely very concerned about the delays and all the negative issues that are in the pipeline or […] May 7, 2024
Aviation Emirates expands retrofit plan by 60% to 191 aircraft Emirates has expanded its fleet refurbishment programme by 60 percent to include 43 A380s and 28 Boeing 777 aircraft. The original refurbishment plan, covering 67 Emirates A380s and 53 of its 777s, will now be increased to 191. “We’re topping up our multi-billion dollar investment in the retrofit programme to introduce cutting-edge cabin products on […] May 7, 2024
Aviation Etihad weighs options to buy directly from planemakers Abu Dhabi’s Etihad Airways is exploring the option of buying a limited number of new aircraft directly from Airbus and Boeing, utilising the available delivery slots that have been canceled or rescheduled by other airlines. However, the state-backed airline’s CEO Antonoaldo Neves has no plans to place a “large order”, Reuters reported. “I’m a big believer […] May 7, 2024
Analysis Aviation Luggage, airspace and size: challenges for Dubai’s new airport Sizing, air traffic control and passenger handling are among the challenges Dubai will face in building the world’s largest airport within the next 10 years, industry experts tell AGBI. Authorities announced last month plans to expand Al Maktoum International into a facility that will handle 150 million passengers annually within a decade, and eventually 260 […] May 6, 2024
Aviation Dubai aircraft lessor slams Boeing for delivery delays Aircraft lessor Dubai Aerospace Enterprise has criticised troubled US manufacturer Boeing for its failure to deliver the promised amount of aircraft. DAE’s CEO Firoz Tarapore said it is likely to only receive around half the number of aircraft from Boeing this year than the planemaker had originally committed to deliver. “The only thing we can […] May 2, 2024
Analysis Aviation Dubai’s airport ambitions ramp up local and global rivalries Dubai’s plan for a massive new airport intensifies the regional aviation race, while reinforcing the Gulf’s bid to overshadow its European and Asian rivals. The emirate’s authorities over the weekend approved the expansion of the cargo-focused Al Maktoum International into an airport ultimately capable of handling 260 million passengers a year. The new airport will […] May 1, 2024
Opinion Aviation The grand plan for DWC finally gets the go-ahead After years of waiting, we have a timescale for delivery of what will be the world’s largest airport April 30, 2024
