Commercial carriers Gulf Air and Kuwait Airways are currently exploring aspects of cooperation in aircraft sales and of coordination in flight schedules at several Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) airports.
The two airlines held their joint committee’s second meeting in Kuwait on Sunday, February 10, seeking to facilitate wider scale cooperation in the future. “Participants discussed cooperation in terms of aircraft sales and joint negotiation in order to obtain the optimal offers," said Ahmed Al-Janahi, Gulf Air public relations manager.
The two sides agreed on fostering technical co-operation between the two airlines to cover engineering and aircraft maintenance at some airports. Gulf Air will offer these services to Kuwait Airways in Bahrain, Karachi, Singapore, Doha and Riyadh. They also agreed on expanding joint technical support at international points such as Damascus, Beirut and Cairo. It was concluded that Kuwait Airways will offer training for Gulf Airs personnel.
In mid-2001, Kuwait Airways was reported to be studying a regional airline scheme that would fly short-range routes, in a bid to cut the national-carrier’s operating costs. The airline has been suffering losses since the 1991 Persian Gulf War, during which it had lost 84 percent of its assets.
Established in 1949, Gulf Air is the national carrier of Bahrain, Oman, Qatar and Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. It operates approximately 1000 flights to and from the Gulf every week, serving over 53 cities worldwide. — (menareport.com)
© 2002 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
