SRI LANKA: Tourist Arrivals In Sri Lanka Drop 50% As A Result Of Easter Bombings, Holiday Cancellations Flooding In

Tourist arrivals in Colombo will fall by 50 per cent over the next two months following the Easter Sunday bombings that killed more than 250 people, Sri Lanka's Tourism Bureau Chairman Kishu Gomes said on Monday.

Tourist arrivals in areas outside Colombo will also go down by about 30 per cent following the bombings, he said at a travel conference in Dubai.

SriLankan Airlines' chief executive Vipula Gunatilleka said at the conference that the carrier had a 10 per cent increase in cancellations last week and expects that number to go up.

Sri Lanka faces a likely collapse in tourism following Easter Sunday bomb attacks on churches and hotels, which would deal a severe blow to the island's economy and financial markets, and potentially force it to seek further IMF assistance.

Gomes said the tourism bureau was chasing a target of 2.5 million visitors in 2019.

We will probably reach about 2 million, Gomes said. We are looking at providing some concessions to the industry for them to be able to maintain their viability for the next few months.

Gomes said confidence could return if the military is able to give assurances on security.

If the military can come out over the next few days and make a strong statement with respect to security that's when we will obviously offer a bit of confidence and try and work against that anticipation.

The cancellations started before the dust had settled on the hotels and churches hit by suicide bombers in Sri Lanka as tourists and operators pressed the panic button.

Sanath Ukwatte, chairman of the colonial-era Mount Lavinia hotel in Colombo, said he lost about 30 per cent of his bookings within days of the Easter Sunday attacks that killed 253 people.

Many holidaymakers got the first plane out of Colombo after the blasts, at least 40 foreigners were among the dead raising fears for a tourism industry that had managed to move on from the shadows of a decades of a long civil war.

The United States, Britain, Australia, India and Israel have all warned their nationals against visiting, while the Netherlands is organising a special flight to evacuate hundreds of Dutch tourists.

On Friday, European travel giant TUI announced it had stopped taking bookings for the South Asian country.

The crisis could get worse before it gets better for the island nation, whose palm fringed beaches and mountain tea plantations were recently named the best place to visit in 2019 by the Lonely Planet guide.

Sri Lanka's Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera had hoped tourism would earn a record US$5.0 billion this year, up from US$4.4 billion in 2018. He thinks the attacks could now see the country lose up to one third of that.

Tourism accounts for about five percent of the economy, with Britain, India and China the main markets. Official figures show tourist arrivals in the first quarter of this year jumped 4.6 per cent to 740,600 from 2018.

But with armed guards now a fixture in some Colombo hotels and cancellations flooding in after the carnage unleashed by coordinated suicide attacks, Samaraweera must work out a rescue plan for establishments now facing ruin.

We expect a 30 per cent drop in arrivals and that means a loss of about US$1.5 billion in foreign exchange, he said on Friday.

Ruchir Desai, a senior investment analyst with Asia Frontier Capital in Hong Kong, said the next year will be a tough one for Sri Lanka.

Given the scale of the attack I still think you would see a negative impact on the industry, Desai said.

It should recover, he added, obviously it depends on the steps the government takes to improve stability.

Ukwatte, who is also president of the Hotels Association of Sri Lanka, hopes Sri Lanka can bounce back.

Sri Lanka's tourism is heading into its low season, and Ukwatte believes if confidence can be restored by October or November, then we will be able to revive the industry with European winter travellers.

Finance Minister Samaraweera highlighted how other countries hit by Islamic State inspired attacks rebuilt their image and convinced tourists to come back.

Typically, countries that suffer isolated IS style attacks see tourism recovering within one to two years, as long as root causes are addressed and security measures taken are well communicated, the minister said.

He pointed to tourist industries in Belgium, France, Spain and Tunisia as countries which had all managed to bounce back after suffering indiscriminate terror attacks.

Much will depend on how the government gets its message across, observers said.

Canadian adventure tourism promoter Wade Campbell criticised the government's communications after the attacks, particularly a top defence ministry official who has since resigned, who said Sri Lankan hotels should have arranged their own security to avoid being hit.

Danger is a perception thing, said Campbell, who is now looking at redirecting bookings to rival destinations like Nepal.

Italians Donatella Papi and her husband Maurizio Fantappie were on a 25-day holiday in eastern Sri Lanka when the bombers struck.

My husband wanted to leave after the bombings, he suggested going to Thailand. But I wasn't too scared then, I thought it would settle down, said Papi.

I think Sri Lanka tourism will fall we are very sad about it. This year is the anniversary of the end of the war it was supposed to be a celebration, she said.

We have no regrets about staying on but we are very sad and worried for our safety and for Sri Lanka.

Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena has assured hoteliers that the government will give them maximum financial relief to revive the lucrative tourism industry hit by the country’s worst terror attack on Easter Sunday that killed 253 people, including 40 foreigners.

Tourism accounts for about five per cent of Sri Lanka’s economy, with India, Britain and China being the main markets.

India is the largest source market for Sri Lanka, which received 2.3 million tourists from around the world in 2018.

Around 450,000 Indian tourists visited Sri Lanka last year and the island nation was expecting the total Indian tourist arrivals to cross one million in 2019.

President Sirisena acknowledged during his meeting on Monday with the country’s hoteliers that the tourism and hotel industries were worst hit after the string of powerful blasts ripped through three churches and as many luxury hotels on Easter Sunday, killing 253 people and injuring more than 500 others.

The bombs tore through three five-star hotels in Colombo: the Cinnamon Grand, the Shangri La and the Kingsbury. Forty foreigners, including 11 Indian nationals, died in the attacks.

Sirisena requested Central Bank Governor Indrajit Coomaraswamy to provide maximum financial relief immediately to the hoteliers.

Hotels Association President Sanath Ukwatte said hoteliers had invested large sums of money in the development of the hotels and requested the government to provide a moratorium or waiver on the capital and interest for a period of at least two years.

During the meeting, the hoteliers also asked the government to hire the services of a professional public relations and communications unit to send out one message to the world.

President Sirisena agreed to appoint a Cabinet sub-committee to look into the requirements of the hoteliers, the report said.

The meeting was also attended by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, Ministers, ministry officials and members of the industry.

The Easter Sunday blasts were the first time that tourists were specifically targeted.

Following the bombings, the US, Britain, Australia, India and Israel warned their nationals against visiting Sri Lanka.

Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera recently told reporters that tourism will be the worst affected.

We expect a 30 per cent drop in arrivals and that means a loss of about $1.5 billion in foreign exchange, Mr. Samaraweera said, adding that the country could take up to two years to fully recover from the deadly bombings which shattered a decade of peace in the country.

Mount Lavinia Hotel south of the capital, a popular site for the tourists, has said there have been a large number of cancellations.

Galle Face Hotel top official Chandra Mohotti also said there will be huge cancellations.

In his first reaction to Sunday’s blasts, Prime Minister Wickremesinghe said tourism industry will be hit by the blasts.

There will be a downward trend, Tourism will get affected. There may be fund outflows, Mr. Wickremesinghe said.

The industry officials said the rebound from the attacks would depend on the security measures to be adopted.

Sri Lanka’s tourism industry faced a difficult time until a decade ago due to the three-decade civil war with the LTTE which claimed at least 100,000 lives.

However, in the recent years Sri Lanka has emerged as a top tourist destination in Asia.


Tourism Observer

SRI LANKA: SriLankan Airlines Operational Safety Audit Registration 2018-2019 Not Renewed By International Air Transport Association (IATA).

SriLankan Airlines revealed that its fleet has one Airbus A330-200 aircraft bearing the serial number MSN-1008 and CAASL registration number 4R ALS that is not currently being used due to several reasons.

The airline said they have removed one of the engines from this aircraft and fitted it to another aircraft as one of its engines is undergoing some maintenance work.

SriLankan Airlines, however, said the management is exploring the possibility of sub-leasing this aircraft to a charter operator or to another airline.

These parts would be replaced prior to the aircraft being leased to another airline, once such a lease agreement is signed for the use of this aircraft, the airline said.

The present management stresses that it was not involved in the decisions with regard to the ordering of the A350-900 aircraft, which took place in 2013; or the cancellation of the order in 2016; or of the acquisition of the A330-200 aircraft 4R ALS which is unsuitable for the airline’s present business model.

The clarification came after the press reported that SriLankan’s operational safety audit registration has not renewed by International Air Transport Association (IATA).

The newspaper reported that the airline has not renewed SriLankan Airlines’ registration for 2018-2019 under its Operational Safety Audit (IOSA), prompting several foreign operators to suspend code-sharing with the carrier until it complies with IATA strictures.

The full statement is reproduced below.

Airbus A330-200 aircraft 4R ALS

Colombo, January 18, 2019: SriLankan Airlines wishes to clarify its position with regard to the utilization of one of its Airbus A330-200 aircraft bearing the serial number MSN-1008 and CAASL registration number 4R ALS.

This aircraft was acquired in 2017 as part of the conditions agreed to between the previous management of the airline and aircraft lessor Aercap, as a settlement against the cancellation of the order of four new Airbus A350-900 aircraft.

However, the cabin configuration of this aircraft, which was manufactured in 2009, is not suitable for SriLankan Airlines’ operations, having many seats and minimum space between seats in its Business Class cabin.

All other aircraft in the SriLankan Airlines fleet operate a two-class configuration of Business and Economy classes, with a particular standard of comfort in seating.

The previous management therefore took a decision to lease this aircraft to a European airline. However, after some time, this European airline violated the lease agreement by defaulting on the lease payments.

The lessee also did not fulfill its obligations under the lease contract to prepare the aircraft for the handover. The engineering team at SriLankan performed the required maintenance checks to make the aircraft ready to fly.

The management is also exploring the possibility of sub-leasing this aircraft to a charter operator or to another airline. Until such time, the aircraft remains at BIA as part of the SriLankan fleet, although it is not in use due to the above-mentioned reasons.

It is a standard practice in most airlines that various interchangeable parts or components such as the engines that are urgently required for an operational aircraft are taken out of aircraft that are not in immediate use, if such parts are not at the time in stock in the airline’s spare parts stores.

SriLankan has removed one of the engines from this aircraft and fitted it to another aircraft as one of its engines is undergoing some maintenance work. These parts would be replaced prior to the aircraft being leased to another airline, once such a lease agreement is signed for the use of this aircraft.

The present management of SriLankan Airlines wishes to stress that it was not involved in the decisions with regard to the ordering of the A350-900 aircraft, which took place in 2013; or the cancellation of the order in 2016; or of the acquisition of the A330-200 aircraft 4R ALS which is unsuitable for the airline’s present business model.

The management is attempting to optimize the usage and return on investment on this aircraft, as with any other asset of the airline. Management is also taking the necessary steps to recover the losses to the airline from the relevant parties.


Tourism Observer

SRI LANKA: SriLankan Airlines Traffic Went Down In 2018

SriLankan Airlines commenced operations between Colombo and Melbourne on 29 October 2017, with the latter airport giving the inaugural flight a water arch salute.

Data from the Civil Aviation Authority of Sri Lanka shows that during the first 12 months of operation, the oneworld member carried 157,342 passengers on the route. This service was also the last route that was introduced to the carrier’s network, with no new routes planned for 2019 so far either.

SriLankan Airlines is the flag carrier of Sri Lanka and a member of oneworld. It currently operates a fleet of 27 aircraft, made-up of seven A320s of which two are neos, seven A321s three neos, six A330-200s and seven A330-300s.

It’s home base is Colombo’s Bandaranaike Airport, where in 2018 the carrier occupied 50% of seat capacity. According to data obtained from Sri Lanka’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), the airline flew just under 1.42 million passengers during Q3 2018, with this down 3.3% versus the 1.46 million that it flew within the same quarter of 2017.

Between November 2017 and October 2018, the carrier flew just under six million passengers according to Sri Lanka’s CAA.

SriLankan Airlines’ leading route from Colombo is Chennai, with the airline having transported over half a million passengers on the route between January and October last year, accounting for 10% of the carrier’s total passengers flown within the 10-month period analysed.

The airline currently serves the 647-kilometre route four times daily, using a mixture of its narrow- and wide-body fleet.

India is the airline’s largest market, with it serving 13 destinations in India on either a seasonal or year-round basis during the time frame analysed, with six Indian cities placing in the airline’s top 15 destinations for passengers carried.

Between January and October, 33% of the airline’s passengers flew on services to/from India.

After India, the airline’s second biggest market is the Middle East, with this region accounting for 24% or 1.16 million passengers of the the carrier’s customers between January and October last year.

Presently the airline serves nine destinations in the Middle East from Colombo, with Doha, Dubai, Riyadh and Kuwait City all making it into the airline’s top 15 destinations with regards to passengers carried.

One route which just missed out on a place in the top 15 is the airline’s newest destination Melbourne, a route that the airline launched on 29 October 2017.

Placing 16th in the airline’s top routes relating to passengers carried, the link to Australia transported 129,110 passengers within the first 10 months of last year, while during its first full 12 months of operation November 2017 – October 2018, the route carried 157,342 passengers.

The airline’s other routes to carry over 100,000 passengers within a 12-month time frame Nov 2017 – Oct 2018, were Jakarta, Guangzhou, Jeddah, Abu Dhabi, Thiruvananthapuram, Dhaka, Shanghai Pudong, Tokyo Narita, Bahrain and Beijing.

While SriLankan Airlines added its last new route in October 2017, it has since cut three routes from Colombo, namely to Hong Kong which ended 27 October 2018, Visakhapatnam 27 October and Kunming 28 February.

The loss of these routes means that in S19, the carrier is poised to offer a network of 38 destinations, with no new routes being planned or announced by the airline for this year.

Male was the leading destination for SriLankan Airlines’ connecting traffic between July 2017 and June 2018, with it accounting for 9.0% of one-way connecting passengers during this 12-month period, while Chennai was second, responsible for 7.6% of connecting traffic.

With these routes being the airline’s top routes for total passenger numbers from Colombo, and having multi-daily frequencies, it is not surprising to see them top the list of connecting destinations as well.

What is interesting to note is that, of the airline’s leading connections, all of them, bar Jeddah, are within a distance of 4,500 kilometres of Colombo.

Of the airline’s top 15 routes for total passenger numbers, only Male, Chennai, Kochi, Riyadh, Singapore, Tiruchirappalli, Kuwait City, Bangkok Suvarnabhumi, Kuala Lumpur, Doha and Dubai were included in the top 15 connecting routes, with Delhi, London Heathrow, Bengaluru and Mumbai not making the connections cut.

This suggests that the latter four destinations are more dominant for O&D traffic to/from Colombo then they are for connecting services via SriLankan’s hub.

During the past decade, SriLankan Airlines had a number of routes into Europe, however these we cut as a result of cost cutting measures for the airline as it re-focused its strategy in recent years.

However, if it was to return to expansion in the long-haul market, OAG Traffic Analyser data indicates that strong destinations for the airline, regarding O&D traffic from Colombo, would be Paris CDG 70,000 one-way indirect passengers between July 2017 and June 2018, Frankfurt 58,100, Milan Malpensa 45,300, Rome Fiumicino 40,400 and Munich 35,900.


Tourism Observer

The opening of international flights to Gan airport, adjacent to Addu township in the south of the Maldives, has opened a new era for the region – providing an alternative transportation offering that can save travellers valuable vacation time.

On 1 December SriLankan Airlines started flying from Colombo to the upgraded Gan airport, formerly a UK Royal Air Force refilling base until 1976 when it became a domestic airport.

SriLankan Airlines now departs Colombo for Gan four times a week – Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays — at 06.55 for the 110-minute journey, using a 150-seat Airbus 320.

"Since we consider Maldives our extended home market, we will explore every avenue to make sure that Gan receives the attention and visibility that it deserves," said Saminda Perera, General Manager – Marketing, SriLankan Airlines.

Resorts in the south of the country have responded favourably.

"Outrigger Konotta Maldives Resort has added an on-demand 30-minute Trans Maldivian Airlines sea plane service between Gan and our luxurious hideaway to meet the new service and provide additional convenience to our guests," said John Allanson, General Manager of Outrigger Konotta Maldives Resort.

"Whether vacationers travel here to enjoy our spacious over-water villas, varied water sport activities or Navasana Spa – we know that the journey here is part of the holiday experience, so we warmly welcome the new option," he said.

Allanson said Gan is "virtually on the doorstep" of the Outrigger and all the resorts in the southern atolls of Seenu, Gnaviyani, Gaafu Dhaalu and Gaafu Alifu.

Having international services landing directly in Gan 545 kms south of Male saves an estimated three hours on travel time to resorts in the south as it eliminates the need to connect with a scheduled commercial flight from Male to domestic airports in the south.

Hoteliers in the southern atolls now hope that airlines, especially those with big feeder hubs in the Middle East, will also introduce flights directly to Gan.

Gan international airport is currently served by domestic carriers Maldivian and Flyme, as well as SriLankan. Private jets are also able to land and park at Gan due to its new international status.

On SriLankan, round-trip tickets from Colombo to Gan start from around USD330. Outrigger is offering a limited-time New Year's Deal up to 30-percent off when booking direct on .

"For any tourist who wishes to spend a holiday in an ambience which is not overcrowded and where not many things come between you and the turquoise Indian ocean, the Gan area is an ideal destination….it is for tourists who explore deeper," said Saminda.

Key Enhancements To Oneworld Events Unveiled

oneworld®, the world’s most awarded global airline alliance, today unveiled key enhancements to oneworld events, its one-stop, easy-to-use travel service for the conferences, conventions, meetings, exhibitions and special events markets.

Key improvements include:

Lowering by half the minimum requirement for the number of delegates flying internationally to an event, to just 50.
A simpler and more generous incentive for event organisers.

The changes are being made on the back of a record year for the programme – with more events and conventions selecting oneworld as their official air travel partner.

They were announced on the opening day of one of the biggest events of the year for this sector of the travel industry – IBTM World. Reed Travel Exhibitions, which manages IBTM worldwide, has itself selected oneworld as its official and exclusive global air travel partner for the market-leading events in its portfolio.

oneworld Director of Sales José María Alvarado said: “The past 12 months have seen oneworld events break all records with twice as many events and conventions signing oneworld to be their global air travel partner than in the year before. So far in 2016, through the oneworld events programme, oneworld has been chosen as the global air travel partner for organisers of events and conventions in more than 100 different cities in 30 plus different countries.

“It is very clear that event organisers and delegates love the attractive flight discounts the programme offers on a collection of some of the world’s leading airlines, to say nothing of the programme’s ease of use and the many other benefits oneworld events provides. Now oneworld events is even better.”

oneworld events is aimed at conferences, conventions, meetings, exhibitions and special events targeting, from today, a minimum of 50 attendees flying internationally - half the previous minimum requirement. Requests are accepted as early as five years in advance and up to three months prior to the event date.

For meeting, event and convention organisers, oneworld events provides:

An efficient and user-friendly centralised process, with one set of terms and conditions covering travel on all oneworld member airlines that can be ready for acceptance just days after submitting the online request form.
Attractive discounts for attendees on flights on oneworldmember airlines, which together serve more than a thousand destinations in 150 plus countries around the globe.
Access to the easy-to-use oneworld events online booking tool, together with option to designate a travel agency.
The chance for organisers to earn and redeem travel credits for flights on participating oneworld member airlines.
Simple online access to real-time management reports 24/7, when using oneworld’s own online booking tool, to help meet attendees’ travel needs.
A ready-to-use oneworld promotional toolkit to build attendee awareness.

For attendees, oneworld events offers:

Attractive discounts on flights for attendees and one travel companion each, on oneworld member airlines, which together serve a thousand destinations in more than 150 countries around the globe. From today, those discounts can be obtained not just by booking direct via oneworld events' easy-to-use website but also via designated travel agencies.
Option to book those discounts direct via oneworld events' easy-to-use website and via designated travel agencies.
A user-friendly booking tool that displays the most convenient flights and multiple fare options from hundreds of departure points all over the world to the event or convention location.
Travel on a collection of some of the world’s leading airlines.
Round-the-clock support, when booking via oneworld’s own online booking tool, with the oneworld events helpdesk ready to help via email or phone.
All the usual privileges and benefits afforded to members of any oneworld member airline frequent flyer programme – including the ability to earn miles/points and, for top tier cardholders and one companion each, to use any of the 650 plus airport lounges provided by the alliance’s airlines the world over. Attendees who are not yet members can sign-up before they depart and then receive their benefits and privileges on their way to or from their convention or event.

About oneworld

oneworld is an alliance of some of the world’s leading airlines, committed to providing the highest level of service and convenience to frequent international travellers. They include airberlin, American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Finnair, Iberia, Japan Airlines, LATAM Airlines, Malaysia Airlines, Qantas, Qatar Airways, Royal Jordanian, S7 Airlines and SriLankan Airlines, and around 30 affiliates. As part of oneworld, these airlines:

Serve more a thousand airports in 150 plus countries, with 14,000 daily departures.
Carry some 550 million passengers a year on a combined fleet of 3,500 aircraft.
Generate US$ 130 billion annual revenues.

oneworld member airlines work together to deliver consistently a superior, seamless travel experience, with special privileges and rewards for frequent flyers, including earning and redeeming miles and points across the entire alliance network. Top tier cardholders (Emerald and Sapphire) enjoy access to more than 650 airport lounges and are offered extra baggage allowances. The most regular travellers (Emerald) can also use fast track security lanes at select airports.

oneworld is the world’s most highly prized global airline group, with more “best alliance” awards than its competitors combined, including currently:

FlightStats’ On-Time Performance Award 2015 for the third time running.
Business Traveller’s 2016 Best Airline Alliance, for the fourth year running.
World Travel Awards’ World’s Leading Airline Alliance 2015, for the 13th consecutive year.
Global Traveler magazine’s 2015 GT Tested Reader Survey Award – for the sixth year in a row.
Premier Traveler’s Best of 2015 Awards – for the third year running.
Business Traveler North America’s 2015 Best in Business Travel Awards.

SRI LANKA: SriLankan To Axe Euro, Australian Plans

As part of its new "Red-To-Black" restructuring programme, SriLankan Airlines (UL, Colombo Int'l) will dramatically curtail its European operations while dropping plans to start flights to Melbourne Tullamarine next year.

An airline official who spoke to Sri Lanka's Sunday Leader newspaper on condition of anonymity said that of the carrier's European routes, Frankfurt Int'l, Paris CDG, and Rome Fiumicino would be dropped owing to their unprofitability while London Heathrow would be retained given the cost and difficulty in securing slots there.

Additionally, SriLankan's much vaunted return to Australasia will also be postponed in favour of greater emphasis on Indian and Chinese operations where the airline has seen solid gains.

Unofficial figures quoted in the country's press claim the carrier has cost tax payers up to LKR131 billion (USD916 million) in accrued annual losses over the past six years.

Having previously favoured a merger between SriLankan Airlines and LCC Mihin Lanka (MJ, Colombo Int'l), Minister of Finance Ravi Karunanayake said in his 2016 budget consultations that he now prefers to retain each as separate, distinct entities. Mihin, he said, would focus on domestic operations while continuing to ply a select number of international routes.

KUWAIT: Jazeera Airways, Largest Airline Serving Middle East Out Of Kuwait.

Jazeera Airways K.S.C is a Kuwaiti airline with its head office on the grounds of Kuwait International Airport in Al Farwaniyah Governorate, Kuwait.It operates scheduled services in the Middle East. Its main base is Kuwait International Airport. The airline has grown since its launch to become Kuwait's second national airline and has been dynamic in popularizing low-cost carriers in the Middle East. Jazeera Airways is one of the largest operators at Kuwait airport, having handled a quarter of all aircraft movements and passengers at the airport during July 2009. According to the July 2009 report issued by Kuwait Directorate General for Civil Aviation's, Jazeera Airways had the largest number of aircraft movement in the month with 1834 take-offs and landings, overpassing the second largest carrier in aircraft movement by 4%.

In 2004 the Kuwait Government permitted the establishment of the non-governmental airline firm, essentially ending Kuwait’s 50-year old dependency on Kuwait Airways. The 2004 Emiree Decree #89 established Jazeera Airways as the first airline to enter this newly liberalized industry.

Jazeera Airways raised its capital of KD 10 million (USD 35 million) through an initial public offering in Kuwait that was oversubscribed 12 times.The capital was doubled to KD 20 million (USD 70 million) in 4Q 2007 by a second offering to existing shareholders. In May 2009, a share distribution of 10% effectively increased the capital to KD 22 million (USD 77 million).

About 26% of the airline is owned by two companies affiliated with the Boodai Group: Wings Finance (9%) and Boodai Projects (17%). 6-7% is also held by Jasem M. al-Mousa Trading, a company owned by a former Minister of Public Works in the first Kuwaiti government established after the end of Iraq's invasion of Kuwait. About 17.5% is held by two real estate companies, and the rest is publicly held.

Jazeera Airways started operations on 30 October 2005 with a fleet of brand new Airbus A320 aircraft, all leather seats, flying to several destinations in the Middle East.

In Q2 2009, UAE authorities requested the airline to terminate its hub operations at Dubai. This step was seen as a support to Dubai's upcoming launch of its own low-cost airline, FlyDubai.

Jazeera changed its operation model by concentrating on its Kuwait hub and trying to launch a second hub somewhere else. By Q2 2010, the new model proved unprofitable as the Kuwait hub suffered from overcapacity. The airline changed its plans by cancelling many stations and parking some aircraft which were later returned to lessor.

Jazeera Airways flies to destinations across the Middle East from its base in Kuwait.

The airline's fleet is powered by CFM56-5B engines. The airline has contracted Lufthansa Technik to maintain and service them. All Jazeera Airways aircraft are fitted with 165 leather seats, equipped with In-flight Entertainment, and split into two cabins: Jazeera and Jazeera Plus. When Jazeera Plus is offered, six seats are cancelled to provide 12 Plus seats in addition to 147 Economy seats.

Jazeera Airways ordered 30 Airbus A320s on 18 June 2007. This was announced at the Paris Air Show bringing its total orders up to 35 Airbus A320s.

During 2010, due to the airline's change of operation plans, several aircraft were parked, and eventually five were returned to lessor Sahaab which leased them to Virgin America and SriLankan Airlines.

In April 2011, Jazeera Airways canceled 25 of the 40 A320s it ordered in 2007. Jazeera will take delivery of four A320s still on order from 2012-2014.

The airline offers business and economy class seating.


Jazeera Airways is the largest airline serving the Middle East out of Kuwait. We currently serve 19 destinations across the Middle East and operate a modern fleet of Airbus A320 aircraft all fitted with our signature leather seats and a two-class cabin. Jazeera Airways’ Economy Class amenities include 40 kilograms in free baggage allowance for every passenger, a complimentary selection of on board meals that change every month, so our frequent travelers can always count on a new meal experience when flying with us. Our Business Class travelers get both an upgraded experience and exclusivity, starting with exclusive check-in lines and business lounge access, up to 60 kilograms in free baggage allowance, an exclusive on-board cabin, and in addition to special meals.

In 2011 Jazeera Airways carried 1.2 million passengers in total across our network, which includes high-demand business, leisure, family, and weekend destinations such as Dubai, Bahrain, Beirut, Alexandria, Amman, Damascus, Istanbul, Sharm El Sheikh, Assiut, Aleppo, Deir Ezzor, Luxor, Mashhad, Sohag, Jeddah, Riyadh, Kuwait, and Cairo.

Established in April 2004, Jazeera Airways was first non-government owned airline in the Middle East and continues to be one of the few Middle-East based non-government owned airlines to this day. Today, Jazeera Airways is a publicly-traded company and is listed on the Kuwait Stock Exchange.

Jazeera Airways is an IATA-member.

The Board of Directors
• Marwan Boodai, Chairman
• Jassim Boodai, Vice Chairman
• Mohamed Khan
• Ahmed Abdullah
• Hany Mohamed Shawqy Younes

The Executive Team
• Marwan Boodai, Chairman
• Donald Hubbard, Chief Financial Officer
• Abdullah Al Hudaid, Chief Operating Officer and Accountable Manager
• Razali Idris, VP for Engineering and Maintenance
• Captain Falah Al Shammary, VP for Operations
• Captain Nasser Al Ajmi, VP for Training
• Naser Al Obaid, VP for Ground Operations
• Bader Al Mershed, VP for Industry Affairs
• Martin Aeberli, VP Revenue Management and Network Planning
• Dr. Mohamed Barakat, VP Marketing & Product
• Rafik Boghdady, VP Sales