New budget airline FlyDubai to take off in mid-2009

Dubai has a new low cost airline and it has been christened FlyDubai. The ruler of Dubai and Prime Minister has approved the name FlyDubai from a shortlist presented by the chairman of the new airline Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum.

FlyDubai will provide no-frills flights to bring people to and from Dubai and would aim at excellence, reliability and an international, pro-business approach, the airline officials said.

The new airline is expected to support Dubai’s commercial and tourism sectors by serving a new set of travellers, and providing them with affordable air links to popular, high-demand destinations. They said that FlyDubai is on track to launch its first flights by mid-2009.

FlyDubai will initially focus on regional flights within the GCC area and surrounding countries. Its operations will be entirely separate from Emirates Airline and Group. According to Ghaith al Ghaith, Chief Executive, FlyDubai, “Since the government announced the formation of Dubai’s new low cost airline in March, it has been on track. We are recruiting for key positions, evaluating aircraft options and routes, working out our pricing and distribution strategy, and putting in place the structure and operational resources for the business”.

Adding that the new airline’s operations would bank on efficiency, he said that it would focus on keeping things simple and flexible. “We want to make it easy for our customers to interact with us, and to have more control in how they book, purchase and select value-added services to their basic flight experience. It has been a busy time, but everything is going to plan. The selection of a name for the airline is only the first of many milestones to come, and we look forward to announcing more details over the coming months,” he said.