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Air Arabia boss sees high growth for budget airlines
Budget air travel in the region will grow strongly in the future as people now have cheaper choices to fly, head of Air Arabia said on Sunday.
- By Shakir Husain, Staff Reporter
- Published: 00:55 October 21, 2008
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Passengers enjoy free flights as Air Arabia celebrates fifth anniversary
Passengers enjoy free flights as Air Arabia celebrates fifth anniversary
Dubai: Budget air travel in the region will grow strongly in the future as people now have cheaper choices to fly, head of Air Arabia said on Sunday.
Adel Ali, chief executive officer of the first and largest low-cost carrier in the Middle East and North Africa, told reporters his carrier has delivered on its promise of "reasonably priced air travel" for travellers in the region.
He said those who thought the prosperous Gulf region had no place for a budget airline have been proven wrong with Air Arabia's successful operations since its launch in 2003. "The future of low-cost carriers will only go one way [upwards] in this part of the world," he said.
Ali said low-cost airlines have changed the aviation landscape in the region by offering cheaper travel and now even legacy carriers mention their fares in newspaper advertisements.
There are now nine budget carriers that fly between Gulf cities and major destinations in the Arab world, North Africa and South Asia.
Air Arabia, which has flown more than 10 million passengers since it began operations, expects to perform better than last year despite high fuel costs.
The Dubai-listed company reported a net profit of Dh82 million for the second quarter of this year, up 14 per cent compared with the second quarter of 2007. It has not yet announced the third-quarter results. Air Arabia shares closed 6.4 per cent higher at Dh1.31 on the DFM on Sunday.
Special offer
To mark five years of its operations, about 12,500 seats will be available free to air passengers on Air Arabia's 42 destinations on October 28. The company said those who have already purchased tickets for that day will be refunded the ticket price.
"Passengers travelling on October 28 to any destination on the airlines' network will be entitled to a full credit of the fare and surcharges paid. The offer excludes government and airport taxes, which are to be borne by the passengers," Air Arabia said in a statement.
Would you avail the offer? Should other airlines follow suit and offer such packages to passengers? How important are such offers in building a loyal customer base?
Your comments
Hello I read your advertisment I am a Pakistani Guy I was thinking to travel this Dec to my country and I normally go after 3 or 4 months for short visit but the price was almost same to EK or PIA so how you people are telling that you provide cheap air ticket please let me know and also send me some flexible detail so i change my mind and start traveel from your air lines.
Muhammed
Sharjah,UAE
Posted: October 21, 2008, 10:55
I have not heard this type of offers before from any of the Airline companies,is this possible to take ticket today for geting this offer
Janees
Dubai,UAE
Posted: October 21, 2008, 10:55
Timely services and hassle free when compared to other budget carriers.Air Arabia should extend its services to all cities in India and the Asian continent.My hearty wishes to AIR ARABIA team for their 5th anniversary.
Bobby
sharjah,U.A.E
Posted: October 21, 2008, 06:47
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