News From CIS and The Middle East

Richard Maslen June 02, 2011

ETIHAD SETS COURSE FOR THE SEYCHELLES

United Arab Emirates national carrier Etihad Airways is to inaugurate flights between Abu Dhabi and Mahé in the Republic of Seychelles from November 1, subject to government approval. The airline will operate four return services per week using an Airbus A320 configured with a two class interior – 16 Pearl Business and 120 Coral Economy seats – and offering 1,088 seats each week. “The Seychelles has strong and growing appeal as a premium leisure destination, with increasing numbers of UAE residents and European travellers holidaying there,” said James Hogan, Chief Executive Officer, Etihad Airways. “Our increased frequencies from mid-2011 on some of our primary routes from Europe make the approaching Northern winter period an ideal time to launch these new services. We expect this will be a hugely popular destination, in particular for holidaymakers from the GCC and European markets, due to the ease of connecting services through Abu Dhabi and convenient scheduling.” Seychelles has been a popular destination for international travellers but it is expecting a rise in visitors after being selected as the honeymoon destination for the UK’s Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, a royal couple popular across the globe. The archipelago comprises 115 islands in the western Indian Ocean, located off of the east coast of Africa. The 41 inner islands constitute the oldest mid-oceanic granite islands on earth, with another 74 islands forming the low-lying coral atolls and reef islands of the outer islands. The inner islands cluster mainly around the principal islands of Mahé, Praslin and La Digue, forming the cultural and economic hub of Seychelles, as well as the centre of its tourism industry.

FLYDUBAI EXPANDS INTO UKRAINE

Low-cost carrier flydubai has announced its first expansion into the Ukrainian market with plans to add flights in September from Dubai to Kiev (three times weekly) and twice weekly links to Kharkiv and Donetsk. An estimated 125,000 O&D passengers travelled between the United Arab Emirates and Ukraine in the last year, a market that is dominated by operators from the Eastern European country. Aerosvit Airlines and Ukraine International Airlines (UIA) already offer direct services from Kiev to Dubai, with the latter also serving Abu Dhabi, while low-cost carrier AirArabia has a daily schedule between Sharjah and Kiev. Aerosvit also flies to Dubai from Donetsk and UIA from Odessa but there are limited flights from outside of the capital where passengers are currently forced to travel domestically to Kiev to travel to the Gulf region. The flights are due to begin from the week commencing September 12.

AEROSVIT TO OFFER KIEV – HONG KONG WINTER LINK

CIS carrier Aerosvit Ukrainian Airlines is to introduce flights from its Kiev base to Hong Kong this winter. The company will offer a three times weekly service from October 30, part of its ambitious plans to expand its network following the arrival of a number of Boeing 767-300ER aircraft. Around 8,000 O&D passengers are estimated to have travelled between Kiev and Hong Kong in the last year taking advantage of the flights of Aeroflot Russian Airlines (via Moscow), Lufthansa (via Frankfurt and Munich), Turkish Airlines (via Istanbul) and Finnair (via Helsinki).

AIR ARABIA EXPANDS SCHEDULES IN SAUDI ARABIA

Gulf low-cost carrier Air Arabia is to expand its network in Saudi Arabia with the launch of new flights from Alexandria Borg el Arab to Riyadh and Dammam. The new links will commence on June 9 and June 11 and will be operated by its subsidiary Air Arabia Egypt, a joint venture with Egyptian travel and tourism company Travco Group. The Saudi Arabian market is witnessing strong growth and a number of airlines have recently announced plans to expand their schedules into the country. Others, including Air Arabia are understood to also be considering establishing new domestic ventures in the country should the Saudi Civil Aviation Directorate proceed with plans to open the internal market to overseas entrants. Air Arabia already serves Jeddah, Medinah and Riyadh from its Sharjah base and its subsidiary’s new flights from Alexandria Borg el Arab will see it compete directly with Nas Air and Saudi Arabian Airlines on the route to Riydah. It will initially offer two flights per week on that route, with three weekly rotations to Dammam, where there is currently no direct competition.

KYRGYZ AIRWAYS INCREASES COMPETITION ON BISHKEK – URUMQI

Kyrgyz Airways has become the third carrier to offer service between Bishkek, the capital of the former Soviet republic of Kyrgyzstan, and Urumqi, the principal city in China’s Xinjiang Province. The CIS carrier has resumed a weekly flight on May 26 following the arrival of an additional Airbus A320 this month. An estimated 45,000 O&D passengers travelled on the route in the past year, a market dominated by China Southern Airlines (77 per cent) which currently offers four weekly flights, but which is also served by Itek Air three times weekly using a Tupolev Tu-134. The route has also previously been flown by a number of Kyrgyzstan carriers across different timescales, the most recent being Altyn Air.