At the halfway mark in August, Gulf Air announced record year on year growth in both passenger and cargo traffic.
“The number of passengers on Gulf Air flights for the month to date is up by 15.6 percent over the same period last year. With an average load factor in excess of 80 percent, passenger numbers over the traditionally busy summer months have exceeded even our own forecasts,” said Vice President Network at Gulf Air, Fareed Al-Alawi.
Numbers of first class passengers are also up by 38.7 percent over the same period last year. The strong growth in this area is due mainly to a 64 percent increase in premium passengers on the European sector.
“Despite the heavier demands on the systems and resources over this period, it is pleasing to note that denied boardings are down by 38.8 percent, and that on time performance (OTP) figures have improved with 86 percent of flights departing within 15 minutes. This compares very favorably with the world benchmark of 80 percent,” said Al-Alawi.
Strong growth in passenger traffic was matched by an increase of 14.8 percent in Gulf Air’s cargo uplift over the same period last year. The significantly improved performance follows record figures in July when the airline achieved a load factor of 72 percent with year on year increases of 13.1 and 8.2 percent in passenger and cargo growth respectively.
Gulf Air was founded in 1950. Today, it is owned by the government’s of Bahrain, Oman and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The airline’s network stretches from Europe to Asia and covers 45 cities in 33 countries. The fleet is one of the most modern in the Middle East and comprises 33 aircraft. — (menareport.com)
© 2003 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
