TOULOUSE, France, 25 October 2005 — Jazeera Airways, described as the first privately owned airline in the Middle East and Kuwait’s new budget airline, took delivery of its first aircraft, new Airbus A320 yesterday evening.
The airline, which aims to offer below-the market fares and has plans to introduce flights to Saudi Arabia, received the first of four A320 fleet on order at an official ceremony at Airbus headquarters in Toulouse, France.
Members of Jazeera Airways’ executive team, officials from Kuwait’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation, and members of the international and Arab media were among those present. All of them were conducted on a tour of the Airbus plant where work is in progress on various A320 aircraft ordered by different world airlines. They all will be on board the plane in its journey from Toulouse to Kuwait today in preparation for the airline’s inaugural operations set for Oct. 30, 2005. The new carrier’s first flight will be to Dubai and second on Oct. 31 to Beirut, from Kuwait.
“This is the first aircraft received by Jazeera Airways, the first private (non-subsidized) airline in Kuwait and the Middle East. That in itself makes today a historical day not only for us, but also for Kuwait and the Middle East aviation sector,” Marwan Boodai, chairman and CEO of Jazeera Airways, said at the ceremony.
The new airline will introduce flights to Damascus, Amman and Bahrain, and add destinations Egypt, India, and Southeast Asia, and subsequently to Saudi Arabia as it receives the remaining aircrafts from Airbus.
“Receiving the aircraft is the last building block of our airline, and I now look forward to receiving our guests from our flight from Kuwait to Dubai on the inaugural day of our operations on Oct. 30,” Boodai added.
“It gives us a great pleasure to hand over the first Airbus A320 to Jazeera Airways. We wish the new airline a successful launch and hope our partnership will grow together with the growth of this young and ambitious airline,” Airbus President and CEO Gustav Humbert said.
Carrying the Kuwaiti flag, the aircraft is the first of a confirmed fleet of four brand new Airbus A320 aircraft for Jazeera Airways. The second aircraft is scheduled for delivery in November, while the remaining two aircraft will be delivered in June 2006. The new aircraft has 165 seats, all leather-fitted, and is powered by two CFM56-5B engines. Jazeera Airways is considering plans to convert the first nine rows — each with three seats in two rows — to be called “Jazeera Plus.”
As the first 100 percent privately funded airline in Kuwait, Jazeera Airways is set to break the country’s 50-year monopoly of the air travel sector with its scheduled start of operations. The new airline operates on a low-fare business model and looks to benefit from increased operational efficiency by building a fleet of the same type of aircraft — the Airbus A320.
Though a new airline, Jazeera Airways is breaking-away from aviation models known in the region, offering a brand new travel experience that gives passengers full control over their travel plans, Boodai told a press conference earlier in the day, adding: “We don’t consider ourselves in the airline business; we are in the business of empowering travelers. We’re committed to achieving highest level of safety and efficiency.”
The new airline offers a variety of booking options: Through travel agents, over the phone by calling the Jazeera Airways Call Center, via SMS, or online, where travelers can book their flights and seats, and pay 24 hours a day. During the flights, passengers are free to purchase their food on board, an approach that adds to their freedom of choice.
