RIYADH, 14 September 2006 — Gulf Air — the joint airline between Oman and Bahrain — is currently studying the possibility of establishing a strategic partnership with Saudi Arabian Airlines.
The airline is seeking to increase its international flights to Gulf destinations from several airports in the Kingdom as part of its expansion of operations in the Gulf region.
According to Fareed Al-Alawi, vice president network of Gulf Air, exchange of information and discussions between the two airline companies are currently under way. He said the cooperation would increase the commercial choices for both Arab air carriers. It would also reduce cost spending.
“Saudi Arabian Airlines is one of long standing partners. With this new partnership, we will operate more flights in the Kingdom and the Middle East,” he said, adding that currently 45 co-shared flights are operated on a weekly basis as a result of the cooperation.
Al-Alawi also said that the airline company registered a 26.5 percent growth rate in the Kingdom last year. The airline opened its new headquarters branch in Al-Olaya Distrcit in the capital on Tuesday, as part of its expansion operations in several cities in the Kingdom that include Jeddah, Dammam, Makkah, Madinah, and Yanbu.
The airline, founded in 1950, covers 50 cities in 30 countries worldwide.