RIYADH, 25 March 2007 — The Riyadh-based Al-Tayyar Travel Group has received a license from the Egyptian government for operating an international airline for the benefit of Gulf passengers traveling to Cairo.
This was disclosed to Arab News by Dr. Nasser Al-Tayyar, chairman of the Al-Tayyar Group, who said the new service, Nile Airlines, would be up and running toward the end of September this year.
“Initially, we shall operate with three aircraft. To this end, we are forming a company with a share capital of $50 million. Whether it will be a closed stock company or a joint stock company will depend on the outcome of the feasibility study that we are now doing.”
Asked about his company opting out of the Saudi market for operating a low-budget airline, Al-Tayyar said they could not get a license. However, the market was huge. That was the reason behind the decision of Saudi Arabian Airlines to operate low-cost flights for the benefit of low-income travelers. Saudia would be targeting some four to five million expatriate workers who cannot afford to pay their tickets to their home countries except once in two years.
He pointed out that Saudia would be split into nine subsidiaries, each of which will be privatized under a phased program. The move comes as part of Saudia’s efforts to improve its services. Nasser said restrictions still remain in promoting local tourism.
“They have not yet activated the tourist visa. Even for those inside the Kingdom, it is still difficult for families to visit the tourist spots, because the infrastructure has not yet been developed. Also, the cost of accommodation in or around the tourist areas is still high compared to other tourist destinations. All these restrictions are killing the tourist trade. We also need tourist literature in English if we want to target the expatriates and other tourists from outside the Kingdom.”
Al-Tayyar said he had submitted a proposal to the Ministry of Education for organizing tours for the students of government schools. They were still unable to make any headway, since the ministry has laid so many conditions for organizing such a tour.
A new trend in travel and tourism, he said, is incentive travel, whereby old customers of major companies or high-performing employees are provided with air ticket and accommodation facilities to visit certain destinations. “This is a way of saying ‘thank you’ to those people.” The trend is now drawing local interest.