Category Archives: Aviation

Oman Air has resumed with effect from 1st December 2021 direct service on its Muscat-Zurich-Muscat route. The route resumption coincides with Oman Air’s 10th anniversary flying to Zurich (ZRH) from its base in Muscat (MCT). Initially introduced on 2nd December 2011, the route was paused temporarily due to the unprecedented pandemic and subsequent downturn in global aviation and travel. Due to strong demand for the route, however, and with the reassurance of its 5-Star COVID-19 Airline Safety Rating from Skytrax, Oman Air is once again delighted to welcome its valued guests on board. In a scaled-down, socially distanced ceremony held at Zurich Airport, Lina Samman, Oman Air Country Manager for Switzerland, accompanied by several Zurich Airport officials, spoke to passengers, local press, and airline partners ahead of the departure of flight WY 154 from Zurich to Muscat. “This evening’s flight from Zurich to Muscat not only resumes scheduled passenger service, but also marks ten years of exceptional service, connecting travellers to the Sultanate of Oman’s natural beauty, its cultural richness, and the genuine kindness and openness of its people.”

Following nearly two years of negotiations, Oman’s Civil Aviation Authority formally initialed a Comprehensive Air Transport Agreement with the European Union and its Member States signalling the Sultanate of Oman’s ambitions for a more liberalized air traffic accord with the European Union. The initialed agreement strengthens both parties’ commitment to fair access to markets for Oman and all EU Member States and is an important first step in a planned 5-year implementation leading up to a fully formalized open skies accord. The initialling was witnessed by Oman’s Civil Aviation Authority President His Excellency Eng. Naif Bin Ali Al Abri, His Excellency Najeem Sulaiman Al Abri, Ambassador of the Sultanate of Oman to the Kingdom of Belgium, and Head of the Omani Mission to the European Union, and Mr. Henrik Hololei, Director-General for Mobility and Transport of the European Commission. The Sultanate of Oman holds bilateral third and fourth air freedom rights with several EU Member States, including France, Germany and Italy. The Comprehensive Air Transport Agreement paves the way for the Sultanate of Oman to increase flight frequencies on existing European routes and add other European destinations for the national carrier Oman Air (WY) and Salam Air (OV). Reciprocally, the Agreement will allow EU airlines to fly to all Omani airports from their home country or from any other EU Member State. Currently, Air France and KLM are the only EU airlines that fly direct to Muscat International airport (MCT) — the Agreement effectively aims to ease market access to Oman for more EU airlines. Besides market access, the Agreement also contains provisions on a number of other important aspects of aviation including commercial opportunities, doing business, safety, security, air …

Emirates will resume its passenger operations between Dubai and Nigeria from 5 December 2021, offering customers enhanced connectivity to and through Dubai. The world’s largest international airline will operate to and from its Nigerian gateways with daily flights, providing travellers from Nigeria convenient access to Dubai, which remains a highly popular holiday and business destination. It’ll also enable travellers to safely connect via Dubai to the Emirates network of over 120 global destinations. Emirates will operate to Abuja with EK 785 and 786. EK 785 will depart Dubai at 1100hrs, arriving in Abuja at 1540hrs. The return flight, EK 786 will take off from Abuja at 1900, arriving in Dubai at 0435hrs the next day. Emirates flight EK 783 to Lagos will depart Dubai at 1030hrs, arriving in Lagos at 1540hrs. The return flight EK 784 will depart Lagos at 1810hrs, arriving in Dubai at 0415hrs the next day. All flights can be booked on emirates.com, with OTAs and via travel agents. Throughout the pandemic, Emirates has been helping its customers travel safely and confidently, implementing industry-leading health and safety measures at every point of the travel journey, helping communities reconnect faster and facilitating economic recovery. The airline has also been working hard to provide up to date, comprehensive travel information to its customers, as well as speeding up processes on the ground through digital verification for Covid-19 via the IATA Travel Pass, as well as touchless check-in and biometrics processing. Ensuring the safety of travellers, visitors, and the community, Covid-19 PCR tests are mandatory for all inbound passengers arriving to Dubai, including UAE citizens, residents and tourists, irrespective of the country they are coming from. Travellers coming from Nigeria …

dnata, a leading global air and travel services provider, has signed a concession agreement with The Government of Zanzibar, along with Emirates Leisure Retail and SEGAP, a joint venture between airport infrastructure and operations specialists Egis, and private equity fund manager AIIM. Under the partnership, dnata will oversee the operations of Zanzibar Abeid Amani Karume International Airport’s (ZNZ) newly-built international terminal (T3), with SEGAP supporting the Zanzibar Airports Authority (ZAA) in a management capacity. Emirates Leisure Retail will partner with MMI as master concessionaire for all food and beverage, duty free and commercial outlets at T3. dnata will provide its globally renowned, quality ground and passenger handling services to airline customers at ZNZ, ensuring safe and timely operations of flights and an excellent travel experience for passengers. dnata expects to handle over 4,000 flights annually at the airport.  dnata will also invest in a state-of-the-art cargo centre to establish cargo operations at the airport, supporting local trade and businesses. The facility will comply with the highest industry standards ensuring efficient and safe handling of a broad range of cargo, including perishables, pharmaceuticals, dangerous goods, live animals, aircraft engines and vehicles. In addition, dnata will launch meet & greet and lounge services through its airport hospitality brand, marhaba, to help passengers further enhance their experience and enjoy a smooth airport journey from check-in to boarding. dnata’s expansion into Zanzibar represents an investment of over US$ 7 million and will create up to 400 direct local jobs with the company. Including this latest investment which is dnata’s first operation in Tanzania, dnata now provides quality and safe ground handling, cargo, catering and travel services in 36 countries. Steve Allen, Executive Vice President …

Dubai Airports has issued a passenger advisory alerting travellers about Dubai International (DXB) getting exceptionally busy over the coming days and weeks. According to the operator, as many as 1.8 million passengers are expected to pass through DXB between November 25 and December 5 with average daily traffic reaching 164,000 passengers. December 4 is expected to be the busiest day during this period with passenger numbers likely to surpass the 190,000 mark. Essa Al Shamsi, Vice President of Terminal Operations at Dubai Airports said, “As always, Dubai Airports is working with airlines, control authorities, and all our other commercial and service partners to ensure a smooth and comfortable experience for our customers. Those travelling during this peak period can make their journey smooth and comfortable by following a few simple tips.” Considering that travel requirements have changed globally due to the pandemic, Dubai Airports strongly urges all customers to: – Be aware of the latest travel regulations for the destination you are travelling to. We urge passengers to get in touch with their respective airlines and ensure that they have all the necessary documents with the required validity before reaching the airport. – Plan some extra time to get to and through the airport as the roads to DXB could get busy during peak times. – Arrive at the airport no earlier than 3 hours before your departure if you are flying out of Terminal 1. Those departing from Terminal 3 can beat the queues by check-in up to 24 hours ahead of their departure. – Use online and self-service options wherever available to get off to a smooth start to your journey. – Say your goodbyes at home as …

The Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism and Gulf Air’s Chairman of the Board of Directors, the National Carrier of the Kingdom of Bahrain, H.E. Mr. Zayed R. Alzayani met with the Director General of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) Mr. Willie Walsh at the Association’s headquarters in Geneva, where they discussed a number of aviation related issues, and elements of this vital economic sector to various revenue-generating fields such as tourism and investment. During the visit, H.E. expressed how he values IATA’s efforts in supporting and developing the  ever-changing aviation industry; noting the importance of the Association’s role in sustaining aviation, especially amidst the great impact of the recent pandemic. Mr. Walsh expressed his thanks and gratitude to H.E. and to the National Carrier as the airline operations continued during the pandemic to help solve some of the global problems during that time. Additionally, he highlighted that Gulf Air remained one of the few airlines that kept operating and never stopped flying during the pandemic, and wishing the National Carrier success and prosperity. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) was established in 1945, and is one of the most notable associations in the aviation industry, connecting many commercial airlines through its membership, and is also involved in setting aviation related policies and regulations in which Gulf Air has been a member since 1981.  

Emirates and airBaltic are starting codeshare cooperation that will open new, seamless travel opportunities. airBaltic customers will benefit from convenient access to Emirates’ worldwide network via its hub in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. At the same time, Emirates passengers will have more possibilities to travel to the Baltic sea region. Martin Gauss, President and CEO of airBaltic: “Emirates is a truly global connectivity provider, and we are excited to start a new partnership alongside direct flights between Riga and Dubai which we commenced in September. The new partnership will enable our passengers to  reach new exciting destinations in Asia, Australia and beyond.” Adnan Kazim, Emirates’ Chief Commercial Officer, said: “We’re very pleased to announce a new partnership with airBaltic, the leading airline in the Baltics, which enables us to offer Emirates customers even more travel choices and connectivity in the Baltic region. It will also open up Emirates’ exciting network of global destinations to more travellers from the Baltics. We look forward to the start of a successful partnership.” airBaltic performs all of its flights with the most modern and environmentally friendly Airbus A220-300 jets, offering affordable and flexible Economy class tickets as well as a full Business class service. A complete schedule of airBaltic flights can be found on the company’s homepage at www.airbaltic.com. Health and safety: The safety and health of our passengers is airBaltic’s top priority. airBaltic has introduced strong health measures and the flight operations follow the recommendations issued by authorities. To read more about the airBaltic health measures, please visit airBaltic website: https://www.airbaltic.com/en/health-measures. airBaltic asks its passengers to strictly follow all of the rules and regulations issued by the relevant authorities. Passengers are strongly suggested …

Just in time for the UAE’s Golden Jubilee, Emirates Official Store has released a limited edition, curated collection of special items that celebrate the journey and achievements of the nation that Emirates calls home. Aviation lovers living in the UAE and around the world can choose from a wide-ranging assortment of commemorative merchandise with the unique ‘50th United Arab Emirates’ design that can be found on the special anniversary Boeing 777 and A380 liveries flying around the world. The collection features everything from A380 1/250 scale aircraft models to lapel pins in varying shapes and sizes, aircraft shaped metal keyrings, scarves, pique cotton polo shirts and tumblers. Emirates Official Store has also launched a sustainable collection of merchandise for the 50th celebrations including caps and notebooks made from recycled materials. The products have all debuted across Emirates Official Store retail locations, at Dubai International Airport and at the Emirates Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai, as well as the Emirates Store website. In addition, Emirates Official Store will be debuting its latest First Class comforts collection offering an exclusive taste of its signature experience – on the ground. Customers can take home the airline’s popular plush blankets, featuring an ultra-soft, velvety fleece texture that warms up any winter night. The blankets come in a pastel soft blue. The super-soft blankets are also available with and without arm holes and leg pockets. First Class experience enthusiasts can also purchase the airline’s latest versions of the Hydra Active™ luxury moisturising sleepwear range. The collection is available for men and women, and features micro-encapsulation technology with shea butter and argan oil, which are released with movement to ensure that skin stays conditioned, soothed and protected. …

Kuwait Airways organized a press conference on the Company’s latest developments in the aftermath of the Coronavirus pandemic and the recent achievements of the Company’s Board of Directors and the future work plans, where the conference was presided by the Kuwait Airways Chairman, Captain Ali Al-Dukhan, in the presence of the Chief Executive Officer, Engineer Maen Razouqi and various officials at the Company. Speaking during the conference, the Chairman of Kuwait Airways, Captain Ali Al-Dukhan stated, “ We are all aware of the difficulties that the entire world experienced as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic, especially the tourism and aviation sector, which was immensely affected by this pandemic, leading to severe stagnation in travel movement and effecting air traffic around the world in general. Kuwait Airways undoubtedly has been one of the airlines that faced these difficulties, as the current Board of Directors of the Company took over the leadership of Kuwait Airways during the pandemic, and in its first year, it encountered difficulties, most notably the challenges of operating during the pandemic and working towards developing and improving the performance of Kuwait Airways to higher levels and under these circumstances.” Al-Dukhan added, “Kuwait Airways is one of the few companies in the world that did not receive any financial assistance of any kind from the owners during the pandemic period, as well as faced many difficulties including stopping operations of commercial flights for several months due to the pandemic. Then the step by step resumption of operation and gradual increase of activity at Kuwait International Airport and determining its share of operating at the equivalent of only 30% of the total share determined for Kuwait International Airport, resulted …

Emirates has concluded the 2021 edition of the Dubai Airshow on a positive note, culminating a week of investment announcements, new partnerships forged, and the strengthening of established connections as key aviation players from around the world came together in Dubai to mark a turning point in the industry’s recovery. This year, Emirates’ presence at the show included participation in the opening flypast; aircraft static displays; an exhibition stand showcasing its latest cabin products, Emirates Flight Training Academy and the Emirates Aviation University; and offering its renowned hospitality for partners and invited guests in the Emirates Chalet. Emirates was honoured to welcome His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai; His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum; His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Maktoum bin Rashid Al Maktoum, to its Emirates A380 static display. Emirates’ latest four-class configured A380 remained a popular draw, featuring the airline’s recently introduced Premium Economy Class cabin, and decorated with the ‘United Arab Emirates 50’ livery, celebrating the Golden jubilee of the UAE. The Cirrus SR 22 and Embraer Phenom 100 jets utilized for training flights by the Emirates Flight Training Academy were also on display to visitors. At the Dubai Airshow, the airline announced a significant investment to retrofit 105 of its Boeing 777 and A380 aircraft with its Premium Economy product, in addition to other cabin enhancements. The entire 18-month retrofit programme, starting in 2022, will take place in Dubai and reinforces the UAE’s status as a centre of aviation excellence. Emirates also signed an agreement with Panasonic to deliver a suite of in-flight …