Bahrain’s national flag carrier, Gulf Air, has been in financial trouble for years, while its much smaller national counterpart Bahrain Air has been struggling since it launched in February 2008. Both airlines struggle against larger, more powerful, mainline airlines and low cost carriers, battling with the Bahraini Government for bail outs, despite Gulf Air pledging…
Kuwait Airways has been mismanaged for years, operating like a government ministry with bottomless financial resources rather than a business designed to turn a profit, leaving the airline drowning in crushing debt. With an Amiri Decree being approved by Kuwaiti National Assembly to finally privatize Kuwait Airways, on the 23rd of January 2013, investors have…
On the 20th of September the Provincial Council of Iraq’s Najaf Province issued a ban on Bahrain’s national airline, Gulf Air, and flights to-and-from Bahrain to Al-Najaf International Airport. The move by the Provincial Council was enacted to support the Bahraini Shiites, the majority of Bahrain’s population, protesting the Suuni leadership in Bahrain. This…
A joint Bahraini Parliament and Shura Council Committee was established on Monday to explore whether Bahrain’s national flag carrier, Gulf Air, should be severely downsized, sold, liquidated, or either liquidating or selling the airline, then establishing a new airline. Gulf Air has struggled to become profitable, and despite the CEO’s pledge to not “request…
Businesses going bankrupt immediately conjure up images of windows being boarded up, assets being sold at auction and phone lines going dead … but that is not the case with American Airlines following its parent company AMR filing for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy protection this morning in US Bankruptcy Court in the Southern District of New…
Gulf Air, Bahrain’s national flag carrier, has facing some significant hurdles recently. On the heals of Gulf Air dealing with financial troubles, an inability to break free of government funding as intended, increased competition in the region and route restructuring, Bahrain has been rocked by political unrest, riots and a public violent divide as citizens…
Back in May of this year Gulf Air’s CEO, Samer Majali stood in front of executives from the airline and announced “It is not logical to continue to request funding from the government to support the airline’s operating losses to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars per year; funds that could be much…
Saudi Arabian Airlines is the latest airline to launch in-flight wifi connectivity and allow passengers to utilize their mobile phones while in flight … and it signals Saudi Arabian Airlines‘ potential march toward the forefront of Gulf State carriers. While I have largely stopped writing about airlines installing wifi on flights due to the rapid…
Gulf Air, one of the oldest airlines operating in the Middle East, has been facing an identity crisis over the past few years. Gulf Air has gone from a major player among Middle Eastern airlines to an airline that did not grow at the pace of its younger upstart competitors, and as a result faces…
Web: www.fishfoto.com — E-Mail: fish@flyingwithfish.com 9/01/2009 – What Is The World’s Largest Airport? (you won’t believe its size!) There are a lot of statistics travelers like to know, some are basic, some more advanced, and some have answers that are just staggering. A common curiosity is what is the busiest commercial airport. This distinction goes…
