Air Arabias Sharjah-Bahrain traffic doubles

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CAPA) Air Arabias passenger traffic on its Sharjah-Bahrain route for June and July 2007 increased roughly 100% compared to the same period in 2006. The company has also seen a significant capacity growth for the same period with 14 flights per week between Sharjah and Bahrain.

Air Arabia began its Bahrain operations with a single flight in October 2003. In June and July this year, Air Arabia flew a record 18,451 passengers on the Sharjah-Bahrain route. During the period, average load factor for the carrier’s Sharjah-Manama route averaged an extremely impressive 93%.

Over the last two months, the highest levels of inbound Air Arabia traffic to Bahrain were recorded from Chennai, Cochin, Dammam, Istanbul, Jaipur, Muscat and Thiruvananthapuram.

Adel Ali, chief executive officer and board member of Air Arabia, said: “Bahrain’s increasing attractiveness as a business and leisure destination is reflected in the increasing number of passengers we are flying there every month. We will continue to meet the needs of our customers traveling to and from the kingdom.”

He added: “Air Arabia has made air travel in the region more affordable by providing a low-cost alternative. Flying to 35 destinations across the Middle East, North Africa, South and Central Asia, we are successfully promoting travel and tourism not just in Bahrain but across this vibrant and dynamic part of the world.”

Air Arabia’s increasing popularity and profitability were reflected in its recently announced half-yearly financial results. The Sharjah-based LCC served 1.23 million passengers during the first half of 2007, a 57.9 per cent increase compared to the same period last year. In this same period, Air Arabia registered a turnover of Dh513 million, up 67 per cent from Dh307 million for the first half of 2006. Profits for the six months of 2007 surged to Dh115 million, a 342 per cent increase compared to Dh26 million in the first six months of last year.

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