Category Archives: Aviation

flydubai has announced that twice-weekly flights from Dubai International (DXB) to Tbilisi International Airport (TBS) in Georgia are available to be booked. Flights to Tbilisi resume as the authorities in Georgia ease travel restrictions for international travel. Jeyhun Efendi, Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations and E-commerce at flydubai, said, “We have steadily grown our network to more than 65 destinations and are pleased to restart our operations to Tbilisi.  We will continue to launch flights to more destinations as restrictions ease in countries within our geographic reach.  Flights are available to book on flydubai.com.” In line with the recent announcement, nationals and residents of Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates can now travel to Tbilisi if they have a negative COVID-19 PCR test result taken no more than 72 hours before the departure time of the flight.  Visitors will have to take a further COVID-19 PCR test, at their own expense, on the third day after entering Georgia.  Alternatively, passengers who hold a COVID-19 vaccination certificate will also be able to travel. flydubai’s passenger experience has been redesigned to enable travel in a safe environment that minimises crew and passenger contact and offers passengers confidence to travel at every step of their journey. The airline has recently introduced an extended multi-risk travel insurance that includes COVID-19 cover to offer passengers greater peace of mind when travelling. In the UAE, flydubai has also partnered with Aster DM Healthcare and NMC Healthcare to offer passengers PCR testing at special rates. To take advantage of these special rates, passengers must be able to present a valid flydubai booking confirmation along with their Emirates ID or passport copy.

Emirates Airline announced that flights to South Africa will remain suspended until February 12, in line with recent government directives that restrict the entry of travellers originating from South Africa, into the UAE. It stated that customers holding tickets with final destinations in South Africa will not be accepted for travel at their point of origin and that Emirates’ regrets any inconvenience caused. Affected customers should contact their travel agent or Emirates contact centre for rebooking options. To receive update notifications, customers are requested to ensure their contact details are correct by visiting Manage Your Booking. Emirates remains committed to serving their customers in South Africa, and said they look forward to resuming passenger services when conditions allow. They will further continue to work closely with all relevant authorities in this regard, and will endeavour to provide their customers with as much support and notice as possible.

Emirates announced that all passengers arriving into Dubai from any point of origin (GCC countries included) must hold a negative PCR test certificate, for which the test must be taken no more than 72 hours prior to time of departure. UAE nationals are exempt from the above, but will be required to take a PCR test on arrival at Dubai airport. Passengers arriving into Dubai from certain countries will be required to take another PCR test on arrival at DXB. Passengers transiting through Dubai must ensure that they comply with the entry requirements of their respective destination country. They further request all travellers to check the website before travelling for further updates.

International Air Transport Association (IATA) welcomes the opening of the new terminal at Bahrain International Airport. “The opening of the new terminal at Bahrain International Airport is not only an important milestone in the development of Bahrain International Airport as a regional hub but also welcome news for the industry during this difficult time. The new terminal will provide vital capacity and capabilities to cargo operators shipping essential vaccines and PPE equipment immediately, and open the door for increased connectivity once passenger traffic starts to pick up. Aviation is a key pillar of Bahrain’s economy—this has been strengthened today, taking the country one step closer to achieving its Economic Vision 2030 to establish the Kingdom as an aviation center in the region. We congratulate all involved in this significant infrastructure project,” said Muhammad Albakri, IATA Regional Vice President for Africa and the Middle East. The 210,000sq m terminal, which is four times the size of the existing facility, increases the airport’s capacity to 14 million passengers a year, having handled around 9 million in 2019.  

Qatar Airways Privilege Club will extend its valued members’ tier status in recognition that travel plans continue to be impacted by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. This initiative will extend members’ tier status until December 31, 2021 and applies to our Silver, Gold and Platinum members whose tier is due to end this year and have not earned enough Qpoints to retain it. This announcement follows news that Qatar Airways will offer all passengers unlimited date changes and free refunds for tickets issued before 30 April 2021 for travel completed by December 31, 2021. Privilege Club members can therefore benefit from flexible booking policies that will allow them to change their plans with ease if they need to, while retaining their current, hard-earned tier status and enjoying the unique benefits associated with it. Thierry Antinori, Chief Commercial Officer, Qatar Airways said, “Having flown continuously during the pandemic, we currently operate the largest network among airlines based in the Middle East thanks to the flexibility offered by our sustainable, wide body Boeing 787 and A350 aircrafts. We also offer the highest standards of safety on board and at Hamad International Airport – recently endorsed by our Skytrax 5-Star COVID-19 Airline Safety Rating Airport Safety Rating. “Our Privilege Club members are very important to us and we want to continue to be there for them. We understand that some of our members may need more time to plan and book their upcoming travel. That is why we are announcing today our latest tier extension as one of the many steps that Privilege Club has taken over the last year to honour the loyalty of our valued members as we navigate these difficult times …

Qantas and bp announced a strategic partnership to further advance their shared net zero ambitions. Through the collaboration, the companies will work together on opportunities to reduce carbon emissions in the aviation sector and contribute to the development of a sustainable aviation fuel industry in Australia. The two companies have agreed to explore ways in which bp’s global capabilities, skills and knowledge can support Qantas’ industry-leading sustainability and environmental strategy. “By bringing our complementary capabilities together, we can help each other, and our customers, move at a faster pace on the energy transition journey. We are delighted to have the opportunity to collaborate with Qantas on plans to reach net zero while continuing to deepen our existing relationship.” Frédéric Baudry, president, bp Australia and SVP fuels & low carbon solutions, Asia Pacific said, “This is another move towards our ambition to be a net zero company by 2050 or sooner and help the world to get to net zero. We believe the planet needs everyone working together on this vital cause, and that supporting companies to transition to a more sustainable future means we can all get there faster. Forming strong strategic partnerships with leading companies like Qantas is an important way to achieve our shared goals and we are proud that bp is working to provide decarbonisation solutions for customers in Australia.” Andrew Parker, Qantas Group Executive Government, Industry and Sustainability said, “While the COVID crisis has compelled us to make many changes across the business, one thing that hasn’t changed is our commitment to minimising the impact we have on the environment. Even though we have been flying a lot less, we’ve actually seen the same proportion of …

Qatar Airways begin trialling the innovative new IATA Travel Pass ‘Digital Passport’ mobile app, in partnership with the International Air Transport Association (IATA), from March 2021. The trial will play an important role in the airline’s vision to have a more contactless, secure and seamless travel experience for its passengers. The first phase of trials of the ‘Digital Passport’ will be rolled out on the airline’s Doha to Istanbul route, enabling passengers to receive COVID-19 test results and verify they are eligible to undertake their journey. It will also allow travellers to safely and securely share their verified ‘OK to Travel’ status with the airline and other stakeholders, even before their arrival at the airport. His Excellency Akbar Al Baker, Chief Executive, Qatar Airways Group said, “The IATA Travel Pass effectively acts as a ‘digital passport’ for travellers and is the latest tool in our fight against the spread of COVID-19, enabling passengers to securely and effortlessly navigate their travel plans, safe in the knowledge that their verified travel credential is based on the latest COVID-19 information, the strictest data privacy regulations and entry rules for the destination they will travel to.” Alexandre de Juniac, IATA Director General and CEO, said, “The trial will help us build confidence among governments and travellers that IATA Travel Pass can securely and conveniently link traveller identities with their digital travel credentials. It will also help us prove that ICAO’s global standards for digital passports work. And it will highlight the need for governments to accelerate their work with industry to develop global standards for health certificates—a critical enabler to safely re-connecting the world.”

Qatar Airways expans its strategic partnerships signing an expanded codeshare agreement with Iberia. The agreement will enhance connectivity between the two airlines’ complementary networks and will offer additional travel options to our customers travelling between the Iberian Peninsula, Latin America, Africa, Asia-Pacific and the Middle East via the Best Airport in the Middle East, Hamad International Airport. Sales of the added destinations have commenced already with the additional codeshare flights starting from today. Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive His Excellency Akbar Al Baker said, “Despite the challenges of 2020, it has been our priority to maintain reliable global connectivity for our passengers. This expansion of our strategic partnership with Iberia further strengthens connectivity between the hubs of Doha and Madrid ensuring more flexible travel options for our customers. Qatar Airways and Iberia have enjoyed the mutual benefits our partnership has brought us since its establishment in 2017, providing more choice and seamless global connectivity for our millions of passengers. As global travel recovers, we look forward to further expanding our commercial cooperation with Iberia and continuing to provide the unrivalled five-star service our passengers have come to expect.” Javier Sanchez-Prieto, CEO, Iberia Group said, “The extension of the codeshare agreement with Qatar Airways is very good news for us. At Iberia we work so that, when countries eliminate their restrictions, we can offer our clients the widest and most comprehensive network possible. The extension of this codeshare agreement with our oneworld partner, Qatar Airways, opens up new markets in Australia and Africa and improves the connectivity we offer between Spain and the rest of the world with a very high-quality service offered by our partner, Qatar Airways.”

Turkish Airlines with its extra guidelines for safe travel and comprehensive hygiene precautions due to pandemic, the flag carrier airline has been awarded the highest ‘Diamond’ status by APEX (Airline Passenger Experience Association) Health Safety powered by SimpliFlying. Analyzed in three categories named Gold, Platinum and Diamond according to the hygiene precautions and preventative measures taken by airlines in the face of the ongoing pandemic, the online audit was conducted with 10 categories and 75 touchpoints in mind as the answers about the health and hygiene precautions were entered with concrete indicators by the participants. Reviewed alongside other airlines, Turkish Airlines achieved the Diamond status which symbolizes the highest health and safety level, thus maintaining its unparalleled service approach and quality in these extraordinary times.Meticulously implementing comprehensive precautions and newly developed changes since the start of the pandemic in order to continue providing a healthy and safe travel experience for its passengers, Turkish Airlines achieved the Diamond status with numerous criteria such as touch-free check-in process, implementation of social distancing, temperature measuring at entrances, Covid-19 test service at the airport, extra hygiene precautions, in-flight social distancing, hygiene expert cabin crews appointed in flights and hygiene kits offered to passengers. On the results, Turkish Airlines Chairman of the Board and the Executive Committee, M. İlker Aycı stated, “We provided comfort and reassurance for our passengers with our Hygiene Expert cabin crews appointed in our flights and hygiene kits offered to all of our passengers, along with all the precautions taken in airports and in our aircrafts.” In his statement on the matter APEX CEO Dr. Joe Leader said, “Turkish Airlines consistently has provided incredible passengers experience now topped by Diamond level …

flydubai announced that Catania and Naples in Italy, Salzburg in Austria and Malta will be joining its European network from May 2021. The carrier has grown its network to more than 65 destinations as countries continue to gradually lift travel restrictions.With the addition of Catania, Malta, Naples and Salzburg the carrier will operate flights to 20 destinations in Europe including Belgrade, Bucharest, Helsinki, Istanbul, Krakow, Prague and Sofia.flydubai flights to Malta International Airport (MLA) and Catania International Airport (CTA) will begin on 12 May 2021 with four times weekly service, while flights to Naples International Airport (NAP) will resume from 13 May 2021 with a three times weekly service.The carrier becomes the first UAE-based carrier to offer direct flights between Dubai International (DXB) and Salzburg Airport (SZG) from May 13, 2021 with a four weekly flights service. Commenting on the announcement, Ghaith Al Ghaith, Chief Executive Officer at flydubai, said, “Since commencing operations in 2009, we have been committed to opening up previously underserved markets and the launch of our latest routes in Europe demonstrates our continuous efforts to offer more people the opportunity to travel more often while creating free flows of travel, trade, and tourism.” Jeyhun Efendi, Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations and E-commerce at flydubai, added, “Whether customers choose to travel in Business Class or Economy Class they can look forward to the convenience of direct connections as well as a comfortable onboard travel experience as they start their journey. We look forward to launching these flights in May.” H.E. Maria Camilleri Calleja, Ambassador of the Republic of Malta to the United Arab Emirates, said, “Joined by the Malta Ministry for Foreign and European Affairs and Malta …