Opinion Aviation Meeting demand of Vision 2030 is far from plane sailing Airbus and Boeing's order books are already filled to the brim June 14, 2023
Aviation Kuwait to buy drones worth $367m from Turkey Kuwait has concluded a contract worth $367 million with Turkish defence firm Baykar to buy its TB2 drones through direct negotiations between the two governments, the Kuwaiti army said. A statement did not reveal how many drones would be delivered to Kuwait or when. International demand for Baykar’s TB2 drones soared after they featured in […] June 14, 2023
Aviation UAE aviation training firm cashes in on pilot demand A pressing need for airlines to requalify pilots as global air travel recovers has sent business soaring for Etihad Aviation Training, with revenues up 30 percent this year. In addition to training and maintaining aircrews for Etihad Airways, the training business supports 70 other passenger, freight and charter operators, as well as government VIP fleets. […] June 14, 2023
Exclusive Aviation Saudi flight bookings above pre-Covid levels International flight bookings to Saudi Arabia this summer are up 8 percent compared with the same time in 2019, indicating a post-pandemic recovery as the kingdom develops its tourism industry. As of May 23, flight bookings to Saudi Arabia in June, July and August were mainly driven by arrivals from Egypt. They were up 204 […] June 12, 2023
Aviation Wizz Air grows fleet to meet low-cost demand Wizz Air Abu Dhabi has revealed plans to increase its fleet size by over 400 percent before the end of the decade, as budget air travel in the Mena region booms. The carrier may also expand further into Saudi Arabia. The joint venture between Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund ADQ, which owns 51 percent, and […] June 9, 2023
Aviation Saudi jet lessor AviLease secures $1.1bn to expand fleet Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund arm for financing of aircraft has secured $1.1 billion in its inaugural funding round. Riyadh-based Aircraft Leasing Company (AviLease) will use the unsecured five-year facility for general corporate purposes, including growing its fleet. “We have successfully closed our debut $1.1 billion unsecured term financing facility, supported by a syndicate of banking […] June 8, 2023
Aviation Airlines seek cooperation to meet ‘tough’ net-zero targets Global airlines called on Tuesday for broad co-operation to reach “very tough” emission targets and pledged to release interim climate targets next year as the industry aims for a goal of net-zero by 2050. Aviation, which produces around two percent of the world’s emissions, is considered one of the hardest sectors to decarbonise and the […] June 7, 2023
Aviation Emirates explores more long-haul jets amid rising demand Dubai-based Emirates plans to order more Airbus A350, Boeing 777X or 787 jetliners as it seeks to expand its fleet amid soaring demand and growing competition in the region. “We are looking at both more A350s, more 777-9 and possibly the 787 range,” airline president Tim Clark told reporters on the sidelines of the International Air […] June 7, 2023
Aviation Air Arabia to double fleet to support Abu Dhabi tourism Air Arabia intends to double its current fleet capacity within the next 12 months to support Abu Dhabi’s leisure and business tourism market, group CEO Adel Al Ali said. “Tourism is one of the key pillars of the UAE economy. Abu Dhabi is an emirate with solid destination appeal and our enhanced fleet size will […] June 6, 2023
Aviation Profit of Middle East carriers to soar 43% to $2bn in 2023 The net profit of Middle East carriers is expected to rise 42.8 percent to $2 billion in 2023, from $1.4 billion in 2022, on higher passenger revenue and capacity, International Air Transport Association (Iata) said in a new report. Revenue passenger kilometres is forecast to grow by 20.8 percent this year compared to a drop […] June 6, 2023
Aviation Iata’s Willie Walsh hits out at the EU as ‘anti-aviation’ Airlines took aim at Europe over green fuel mandates and its failures to stem France’s air traffic control strikes as they weigh on carrier capacities at a global airlines meeting in Istanbul on Monday. European regulators have introduced a new mandate demanding airlines use sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), an alternative to jet fuel that produces […] June 6, 2023
Aviation Saudi’s Riyadh Air plans trio of new plane orders Saudi Arabia’s new airline Riyadh Air is in the midst of a three-part inaugural fleet acquisition including ongoing talks with Airbus and Boeing to buy a significant number of narrow-body jets, CEO Tony Douglas said. The creation of a second Saudi national airline, with industry veteran Douglas as its CEO, was announced alongside an order […] June 6, 2023
Aviation Iata urges jetmakers to fix aircraft delivery delays The head of a group representing global airlines renewed pressure on planemakers to speed up plane and parts production on Sunday, warning the delays would curtail airline capacity as demand for air travel nears a full recovery from the pandemic. Willie Walsh, director general of the International Air Transport Association (Iata), told Reuters the topic […] June 5, 2023
Aviation Qatar Airways may scrap first-class on long-haul flights Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker says the airline plans to avoid including first-class seats on its future next-generation long-haul Boeing 777X aircraft. The investment in the “most luxurious seats” does not justify the returns, as the airline’s business class offers much of the same perks, he added. “Why should you invest in a subclass […] June 4, 2023
Aviation Global airline summit to tackle climate goals Airlines will ride the crest of a faster-than-expected recovery and discuss ways of translating climate pledges into action at a summit buoyed by a return to business as usual later this week. The influential International Air Transport Association (Iata) holds its annual meeting on June 4-6 with many of its 300 carriers enjoying higher fares […] June 4, 2023
Aviation Global airlines set to tackle non-CO2 emissions Global airlines are setting up a task force to deal with non-carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, stepping up efforts to tackle cloudy streaks formed by aircraft known as contrails, an environmental threat that until now has taken a backseat to carbon pollution in the response to global warming. The move comes as the International Air Transport […] June 1, 2023
Aviation US electric aircraft developer lands in Abu Dhabi A hybrid-electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft developer from California is planning to set up a regional HQ in Abu Dhabi as trade deals between the Emirates and the US focus on advanced technologies. Odys Aviation has joined the UAE Ministry of Economy’s NextGen foreign direct investment programme, which aims to attract digitally enabled businesses […] May 31, 2023
Aviation Boeing looks at selling 150 jets to Riyadh Air Boeing Co is looking at striking a deal to sell about 150 737 Max jetliners to Saudi Arabia’s Riyadh Air. The new carrier, wholly owned by the kingdom’s Public Investment Fund, is looking for about 300 to 400 single-aisle jets in total, Bloomberg News reported, citing informed sources. European plane manufacturer Airbus may also claim […] May 29, 2023
Aviation Emirates’ Penelope Cruz signing targets Spain and Latin America Emirates is planning to spread its wings further across Spanish-speaking destinations with the help of actress Penelope Cruz. The Academy Award-winning star has been announced as the latest brand ambassador for Emirates. She will feature in a series of advertising campaigns across the summer in English and her native Spanish. Emirates – which reported a […] May 26, 2023
Opinion Aviation Airline alliances? Emirates forges its own flight path Bilateral agreements can be easier to manage and more tightly targeted May 25, 2023
Aviation Qatar Airways CEO calls for realism over net-zero targets The CEO of Qatar Airways has said the lack of readily available aviation fuel alternatives will throw the industry’s goals of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050 into doubt. Akbar Al Baker is a long-standing critic of suppliers of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), labelling it “exorbitantly expensive” and claiming it’s only available in low volumes “because […] May 24, 2023
Aviation Ryanair cautiously optimistic of profit in next 12 months Ryanair on Monday posted a near record profit of €1.43 billion ($1.57 billion) in the year to end-March and said it was cautiously optimistic that profits would rise modestly in the next 12 months, with summer demand notably robust. The Irish airline, Europe’s largest by passenger numbers, expects summer European short-haul capacity to remain below […] May 22, 2023
