Emirates defers world’s longest flight
DUBAI’S Emirates airline has postponed the launch of what is said to be the world’s longest non-stop flight between Dubai and Panama. The 17 hours and 35 minutes direct flight, which was set to be launched from March 31, will now start in late 2016 or early 2017 due to "operational factors," the Dubai airline said. The airline had announced in August that it would launch the world’s longest flight to Panama using a Boeing 777-200LR (long range) aircraft capable of carrying up to 15 tonnes of cargo.
Meanwhile, Emirates launched its first non-stop service between Dubai and Auckland, one of the world’s longest scheduled flights with an estimated flight time of just under 16 hours from Dubai to New Zealand and 17 hours, 15 minutes in the other direction, cutting journey times by almost three hours each way.
Turkish to launch new European routes
TURKISH Airlines continues to expand its operations in Europe with the plans to launch two more destinations in Europe. The flag carrier will start operating scheduled flights, based on fleet availability, to Dubrovnik, Croatia, and Kosice, Slovakia, it said. Flights to Dubrovnik will commence from June 27 and run until October 29. Launch dates for Kosice have not yet been revealed.
Oman’s first budget airline named ‘Salam Air’
MUSCAT National Development and Investment Company (Asaas) has announced that the country’s first budget airline will fly under the brand name ‘Salam Air’. Homage to Oman’s deeply-rooted culture and long-standing history as an ambassador of peace, the name, which is derived from the Arabic greeting, is a result of a nationwide public poll conducted on the online social networking platform Twitter and Asaas’ corporate website.
Saudia to get first A330 Regional
ASSEMBLY of Saudi Arabian Airlines’ first A330 Regional is well under way at the Airbus final assembly line (FAL) in Toulouse, France. The aircraft is the first of 20 A330-300 Regional that will join the airline’s fleet, making Saudi Arabian Airlines (Saudia) the first carrier in the world to operate the new Airbus A330-300 Regional. The A330-300 Regional is optimised to seat up to 400 passengers on missions up to 3,000 nm and offers significant cost savings through a reduced operational weight of around 200 tonnes.
Jet Airways offers 6th Dubai-Mumbai flight
JET AIRWAYS has launched its sixth daily flight from Dubai to India’s financial capital Mumbai. With the launch of the new flight, Jet Airways now operates a total of 10 daily flights between India and Dubai.
RJ to operate regular service to Guangzhou
ROYAL Jordanian (RJ) has inaugurated a new regular route from Amman to the Chinese city of Guangzhou, also known as Canton, with three weekly flights. Guangzhou is RJ’s second Chinese destination and the fifth in the Far East. The others are: Hong Kong, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta.
RJ will fly to Guangzhou via Bangkok on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, using its wide-body Boeing 787 or Airbus 330 aircraft.
Qatar Airways to boost Bucharest flights
QATAR Airways is celebrating five years of service to Romania with doubling of flights on its Doha-Bucharest route this summer. The service is set to increase to a 10 weekly offering from June 2 and to 14 flights per week from August 1. The Bucharest-Doha route is served by an Airbus A320 aircraft.
• Qatar Airways is set to start flights to Seychelles from December 12, Akbar Al-Baker, group chief executive, announced at ITB Berlin in Germany last month.
Gulf Air to expand footprint with new planes
GULF AIR, Bahrain’s national carrier, plans to boost its global footprint by more than 50 per cent within the next seven years with the acquisition of new aircraft. The carrier will start taking delivery of the new aircraft in the second quarter of 2018, Zawya said quoting Maher Salman Al Musallam, the airline’s chief executive officer. The airline has placed orders worth a total of $7.6 billion for 45 Boeing and Airbus planes. The contracts include 16 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners, 17 Airbus 321neo, and 12 Airbus 320neo.