Bmi to link Dammam-Heathow
BMI will start flights between Dammam in Saudi Arabia and Heathrow early next year with three weekly departures.

Operated with a wide-bodied Airbus A330 aircraft configured for 42 business and 156 economy seats, the new Dammam service is expected to build on the success of flights to Bmi’s existing Saudi destina-tions of Riyadh and Jeddah.

Morocco second hub for Air Arabia
Air Arabia has announced plans to establish its second hub in the Moroccan capital, Rabat. This will provide the Sharjah based carrier with a platform from which to reach into the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) markets. The announcement follows the signing of a management agreement between Air Arabia and Regional Air Lines, a private carrier in Morocco. Adel Ali, board member and chief executive officer of Air Arabia, said: “With a strong presence in the Egyptian cities of Alexandria, Luxor and Assiut, Air Arabia will now be able to expand significantly this coverage area across the EMEA region.”

New Dubai-Astana flights launched
Air Astana JSC, a Kazakhstan-based carrier, has launched a direct non-stop flight from Astana City in the south of Kazakhstan to Dubai. The new route will operate twice weekly services in addition to the existing daily services between Almaty and Dubai.
Chan Gammampila, regional general manager, Middle East, Africa & Indian Subcontinent commented: “In 2006 Air Astana operated three flights a week between Dubai and Almaty. The airline now flies daily to Almaty and with the addition of Astana, the total number of flights from Dubai to Kazakhstan will be nine flights per week. A return ticket on this route ranges from Dh2,080 to Dh4,560 for economy class and from Dh6,230 to Dh7,640 for business class.

Gulf Air’s third flight to London
Gulf Air has introduced a third daily non-stop service between London Heathrow and Bahrain. The extra service will meet increasing customer demand on the route, particularly in first and business classes.
A new Boeing 737-800 recently joined the airline’s fleet to meets its winter needs, and another will join it in December.

Jazeera launches Maldives service
Kuwait and Dubai based Jazeera Airways now flies non-stop between Dubai and Maldives on Sundays and Tuesdays. Jazeera Airways operate a fleet of new Airbus A320s.
“Our fares start at Dh249 ($67.8) to the Maldives, making Jazeera Airways 80-90 per cent cheaper than other airlines,” chairman and CEO, Jazeera Airways, Marwan Boodai, said at the launch event in the Maldives.