JEDDAH, 6 November 2004 — Air-India has announced a schedule of extra flights from Nov. 15 and 19. All extra flights will be from Jeddah to Bombay. They will depart from Jeddah at 12: 35 p.m. on Nov. 15, 3:35 p.m. on Nov. 16, 12:35 p.m. on Nov. 17, 12:50 p.m. on Nov. 18 and 1:15 p.m. on Nov. 19. The airline’s Western Region manager, P. Ashok Kumar, hosted an iftar party at Jeddah Trident last week. It was attended by representatives of the travel trade.
Alpha Cargo Raffles Air Tickets
JEDDAH, 6 November 2004 — Alpha Cargo Services held a draw for air tickets at its annual iftar party at Al Salam Holiday Inn last week. Five air tickets and 15 gift hampers were distributed to winners of a draw held on the occasion. Gulf Air, Cyprus Airways, Emirates, Royal Jordanian, Jet Airways, Air France Cargo, Lufthansa Cargo, Royal Brunei and Malaysian Airlines were among the sponsors.
Air Arabia Celebrates First Anniversary
JEDDAH — Air Arabia LLC, the United Arab Emirates’ national airline and first low-cost airline of its kind in the Middle East and North Africa, celebrated its first anniversary last week. The airline marked the occasion by awarding its 500,000th passenger, Lebanese Ruaida Faqeh a complimentary trip. Ruaida was chosen by the airline’s booking system as the lucky customer and when she arrived at Sharjah International Airport with her children for her trip to Beirut. She was met by members of the airline’s management team who rewarded her and her family with the complimentary trip. “Air Arabia made it possible for me to travel home with my family. We had a very enjoyable flight and the seats are very comfortable. I would like to commend the airline for their choice of cabin crew as they really know how to look after their passengers,” she said.
Emirates Holidays Offers Getaways
DUBAI, 6 November 2004 — The great getaway offerings from Emirates Holidays, claimed to be the largest tour operator in the Middle East, just got better with this year’s “Great value getaways.” The promotion offers ‘five nights for four’ on many of Emirates Holidays’ favorite and most popular destinations. The choice of destinations offers something for all tastes with Amman, Beirut, Mauritius, Maldives Colombo, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Singapore and Istanbul, all available for this promotion. The Dubai-based international airline has announced its decision to add four destinations in 2005. They include Seychelles, Seoul, Hamburg and Geneva. The airline recently opened a new chapter in regional commercial aviation by becoming the first in the Arab world to offer e-ticketing. The facility is rapidly being rolled out to its network, global distribution systems and interline e-ticketing partners, benefiting passengers worldwide. Since May, when the airline first launched the system, it has nearly doubled the number of destinations that are e-ticket compliant. Starting with 26 destinations, today e-ticketing is available from America to Australia, in 44 cities across the Emirates network.
Gulf Air Looks Into Business Travelers’ Needs
BAHRAIN, 6 November 2004 — Research on business travelers’ needs, especially in the Middle East, indicates that the key areas of importance to them are network connectivity and flexibility, frequent flyer benefits and excellent business related products and services in the air and on the ground. This research has subsequently helped Gulf Air tailor its products and services, which in turn has contributed to an unprecedented surge in business travelers on the airline. In the first half of 2004, the airline’s passengers increased by 39 percent and this number continues to grow. Its first and business class travel has grown by 48 percent, with premium travel on European routes up 34 percent. Another indication of its renewed success is the 171 percent membership growth in Gulf Air Frequent Flyer program. “It’s our goal to create a seamless travel experience and we’re doing this by offering our passengers more convenient travel choices and introducing innovative products and enhancements,” said James Hogan, president and CEO of Gulf Air. Gulf Air, meanwhile, hosted an iftar party for the travel trade in Jeddah over the weekend.
