Airline News - Africa / Middle East.

Mar 20, 2006

Emirates

Emirates upgraded its onboard healthcare capabilities with the Tempus monitoring system, which records data such as blood pressure, pulse rate and temperature before sending it through the inflight communication system to specialists at the MedLink Response Center in Arizona. Manufactured by Remote Diagnostic Technologies of the UK, Tempus is installed on Emirates A340-500s operating services to New York, Osaka, Sydney, Melbourne, Auckland and Christchurch. It will be added to the A380s and 777s on order. Mar 16, 2006

Emirates' Clark reveals fleet plans. Emirates President Tim Clark said the carrier is considering delaying next year's scheduled delivery of a dozen A340-600s and is close to choosing between the 787 and A350-900 for a 50-aircraft order.Clark said in Berlin on Friday. Emirates currently operates a fleet of 90 aircraft. It is expecting to take delivery of up to 14 777-300ERs through March 31, 2007, but is evaluating holding off on the A340-600s while Airbus works on improvements. In two or three months, Emirates is expecting to make its final decision between the A350-900 and the Dreamliner. Of the latter, Clark said he is most interested in the dash 10 version. "We are talking about 16/17-hour nonstop flights, like to South America. We need an aircraft for around 300 passengers on these operations," he said. From 2011, the new aircraft should replace older 777-200s and A330s. Emirates will face a staffing challenge when it begins putting the new aircraft into service. A $100 million cabin crew training center should be online in Dubai in the first quarter of next year. The airline currently employs 7,000 cabin crew but in five years that number will more than double to 16,000. It will add 350 pilots in 2006 and two A380 simulators, bringing the total to nine. Emirates is planning to introduce the 777-300ER on one of its two nonstop services to New York in place of an A340-500. Regarding the network, Clark said all European destinations currently served with daily flights should see twice-daily services in the future. Mar 13, 2006

Ethiopian Airlines 

Ethiopian Airlines will resume its Addis Ababa-Dakar service on March 26. Four-times-weekly flights will arrive in Senegal via Lome and Abidjan and return the following day using 757s and 767-200s. Service becomes daily in June with flights via Ndjamena and Bamako. Ethiopian will launch thrice-weekly Addis Ababa-Libreville service on March 28 aboard a 757, adding a fourth flight on June 3. Mar 16, 2006

Etihad Airways 

Emirates has taken the route launched by others more than two decades back (and subsequently dropped) in introducing a premier hospitality management division to be called Emirates Hotels & Resorts. The new company will develop an international portfolio of luxury conservation resorts, spas, and fully serviced upmarket apartment accommodation. In fairness Incontinental Hotels (Pan Am and SAS) and ANA Hotels were designed to support their respective airlines in offering the business traveler accommodation, whilst the new Emirates product takes the whole idea a step further. The hospitality operation will be modeled on the success of Emirates Al Maha Desert Resort & Spa. Situated in the Dubai desert, this conservation-based resort is being used as the basis of designs and operations for Emirates Wolgan Valley, a similar unit located in the World Heritage area of Australia's Blue Mountains. The new division's Emirates Marina Serviced Apartments & Spa, situated in Dubai's largest yacht bay and marina, is scheduled to open in March 2007. Located beside beaches, major business centers, and cafes and restaurants, this luxury apartment complex will be followed by Emirates Green Lakes Serviced Apartments in mid-2007. The properties will offer unparalleled levels of luxury-serviced accommodation for short- and long-term guests on leisure or business visits. http://www.emirates.com Mar 19, 2006

Ozjet

Ozjet, the Australian all business class scheduled airline and brainchild of former Manardi F1 owner Paul Stoddart (and still current chairman of European Aviation Air Charter based at Bournemouth), has closed down. "The experience has been very costly to me personally, but my thoughts are more for those who have worked so tirelessly only to find that, as hard as we have tried, ultimately scheduled services were not successful," he said. "Unfortunately, for whatever reasons, we have not had the support we needed to operate in that environment against big, established carriers." OzJet will retain its Air Operator's Certificate, and a minimum of two Boeing 737 aircraft for charter work and about 30% of its staff. http://www.ozjet.com.au Mar 19, 2006

OzJet, Australia's first premium-only airline, suspended scheduled operations after only three months, citing its failure to break the stranglehold of Qantas and Virgin Blue on the business travel market. It cancelled its Sydney-Melbourne service and will not proceed with plans to establish flights to Perth next month. About 70 employees lost their jobs. The airline is expected to continue a limited charter operation, scaling down its 737-200 fleet from four to two and keeping approximately 30% of its staff. Qantas has agreed to carry passengers stranded by OzJet's withdrawal. "OzJet will focus its future flying around ad hoc and VIP charters, something there is clearly a demand for in Australia as little, if any, competition exists in that market," Chairman Paul Stoddart said. The carrier launched services in December but immediately ran into the traditional slow season for business travel and despite promotions never was able to fill more than 50% of the 60 seats onboard its aircraft. It is the fourth startup to exit the domestic market in the past 16 years following the collapses of two Compass Airlines in the early 1990s and the departure of Impulse Airlines, which was acquired by Qantas in 2001. Mar 14, 2006

Qatar Airways

Qatar Airways is on the march, again. The Doha-based carrier is revamping its image and exterior paint scheme and introducing on its yet to be delivered Airbus A340-600 what is the only dedicated onboard first class lounge flying today. It features a standup bar with drinks rack and spotlight mood lighting as well as cream leather sofas that can seat up to six passengers. Lampshades are positioned on two teak wooden tables, whilst the windows feature a special additional aspect, electronically operated window shades. The general ambiance of the lounge is one of comfort and relaxation with Qatar Airways strong burgundy corporate colors evident in the curtains, carpets and furniture. The airline says other innovations are on the way. Qatar has ordered ten A340-600s with deliveries beginning this summer over a two-year period. The aircraft is designed to operate long haul flights from Doha to Europe, United States, Far East and Australia. (Before readers email the editor, it may be splitting hairs but the Virgin Atlantic airborne bar is a bar, and Upper Class is J class rather than F). The old upstairs bars on the 747s have gone. http://www.qatarairways.com Mar 19, 2006

Qatar Airways will launch a daily service to Hong Kong from March 26 aboard a two-class A330. Mar 16, 2006

Royal Jordanian

Royal Jordanian will transfer its Paris operations from Orly to Charles de Gaulle on March 26, allowing it to join its future oneworld partners in Terminal 1 when it becomes a full member of the alliance later this year. RJ operates five weekly flights to Paris aboard A320s. Mar 14, 2006

SOUTH AFRICAN AIRWAYS 

South African Airways unveiled an A340-600 repainted in Star Alliance livery yesterday. SAA is scheduled to join the alliance on April 10. All members are required to paint 3% of their fleet in the group's livery. The carrier also will paint a 737-800. Mar 16, 2006