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Headlines - July
- August 2003
Sharjah
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Martin Air to operate charter flights to Kathmandu & Colombo
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Martin Air, the Holland based airline, will use Sharjah International Airport for transit stops when its charter flights fly to Kahtmandu and Colombo later this year. Peter Scholten, vice-president Asia Pacific of Martinair Cargo stated.
"We will have two flights to Kathmandu, Nepal from September this year which will stop at Sharjah Airport. We will follow that up with flights to Colombo which again will be routed through Sharjah," he said. These will be technical stops, which will also enable passengers to do a little shopping at the airport’s duty free shops. "These flights will be operated by our leisure department and will be on behalf of charter companies in Holland." |
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On operating charter flights to Sharjah, Scholten disclosed that though there were no immediate plans, it could not be ruled out. "A number of destinations are under study and flights to Sharjah could become a possibility as it continues to grow as a tourist destination," he said.
In the latter part of this year, the airline will have 22 stops per week in the new cargo hub in addition to the charter flights. The implementation of a cargo hub in the Middle East is part of the carrier’s expansion plans in the Asia Pacific
region.
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| Sharjah
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SNTTA group launches Charter Services
As part of its strategic expansion plan for its dedicated logistics division, SNTTA Group, comprising the international freight forwarding and logistic company SNTTA Freight and.
Logistics headquartered in Dubai and SNTTA Cargo the GSA company headquartered in
Sharjah, has set up a new branch office in the Sharjah Industrial Area to cater to the growing need for professional logistics solutions in this region.
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Salim Gulam,
Manager- International Freight & Chartering |
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Heading the new division is Salim Gulam, Manager- International Freight
Chartering. Commenting on his new responsibilities Gulam states, "We see a lot of cargo movement potential from the used automobile spare parts, home appliances and small scale industrial services in this area, who have not had any professional cargo services available until now. My job is to grow the cargo division of International Freight and at the same time establish the charter division."
The vision of SNTTA Group is to offer a one-stop shop transportation solution and air charter can be used as one of the links of the logistics chain. "We want to bring chartering forward as a viable transport solution for not only our direct
clients but offer it to other freight forwarders in the industry as well. The aviation industry has no doubt suffered a down turn in the last couple of years globally and I feel that the demand for leasing and chartering worldwide is going to grow, because the airlines will look for cheaper and less committed options to grow their businesses," adds Gulam.
The company sees a good potential for its charter division. Since the launch, it has already conducted charters for the US army and UN buying houses carrying outsized cargo from the UAE to Kuwait, which would then move to Iraq by land. Further, SNTTA is now in a position to also arrange for charters from Kuwait to Iraq and from the UAE directly to Baghdad, Mosul and Kirkuk. In the near future Gulam intends to start offering a complete gamut of chartering services, to include executive business jet charters to the corporate traveler and operational services like landing, handling, fuelling etc. of charter aircrafts worldwide.
Being GSA for ten airlines makes the charter division an ideal addition to the group by offering the leasing and charter services to its principal airlines. Gulam has been conducting talks with their regional GSA airlines such as Kuwait Airways and PIA to start charter flights using their services to meet seasonal demand for a short time period with minimum investment. "With the unpredictability in the market I think the leasing and chartering trend will spread fast with regional airlines who want an option to cater to the seasonal market demands."
An organization with 25 plus years of experience and with more than 200 offices of its agents worldwide, SNTTA Group is well positioned to cater to the growing demands from the region. They have recently purchased a 5000 square metre warehouse in Jebel Ali Free Zone to cater to the increasing demand of offering complete logistic solutions from the area. It has also recently been accredited as a member of The International Air Cargo Association
(TIACA).
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| Abu
Dhabi
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Royal Jet takes off to a good start
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May 11th 2003 marked the launch of Royal Jet, the premium private charter aircraft service having its base in Abu Dhabi, UAE. A joint venture shared equally by Amiri Flight of Abu Dhabi & Abu Dhabi Aviation, the concept addresses all the busy and special traveling needs of customers offering total flexibility, security and confidentiality, to any chosen destinations. In an exclusive interview, Ammar Balkar, Director Sales & Marketing, Royal Jet gives us an insight into their dynamic business. |
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Ammar Balkar,
Director Sales & Marketing |
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How and when was the idea for Royal Jet conceived?
Way back in 2000, our Chairman Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan came up with the idea that we should have private jet operations from Abu Dhabi and commissioned a feasibility study. The results showed that there was a big demand for VIP Air Charters amongst businessmen .The other potential we saw was for emergency medical evacuations.
Thus under the patronage of his H.H. Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Commander of the Armed Forces and H.H. Lieutenant General Staff Pilot Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al Nahyan, His Excellency Sheikh Hamdan bin Mubarak al Nahyan, Royal Jet Chairman, officially announced the launch of royal jet in May 2003.
Which are the aircrafts you are using?
Royal Jet is currently operating one Boeing Business Jet (BBJ) 737-700 aircraft, specifically designed for corporate and VIP
use. With a seating configuration of 22 VIP
/ 8 Business Class and 12 economy, it has
a very long range and can fly up to 12 hours non-stop. In fact, using the BBJ we
are operating a weekly flight departing from Abu Dhabi International Airport to Geneva
on behalf of Gulf Air.
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What is the future expansion plan?
We have already ordered 2 Gulf Stream G300s, the first of which will be joining our fleet on the 16th of August; the second on will join us on the 10th of September this year. Both the aircrafts have a seating configuration of 14 seats, and can fly non-stop for approximately 7 hours. One of the Gulfstreams will be medically dedicated and is going to be fully fitted with all medical facilities from the manufacturer itself. I am proud to say that we are the only one in the GCC fully authorized to do this kind of specialized work. We already have a 24 hours standby medical team.
Besides the fleet expansions we also plan to expand our offices. Come September you will see the inaugural of our Dubai office and one of the Gulf Stream’s will be based there. Effective January 2004 we have already signed agreements to have offices in Jeddah and Riyadh in Saudi Arabia.
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Do you see yourself operating to Iraq?
Yes, in fact we have already successfully done a charter on this route. Royal Jet was the first civilian aircrafts to land in Baghdad International Airport on the 8th of June 2003. The flight took off in the morning from
Abu Dhabi International Airport with 17 businessmen on board and came back the same day.
How do you gauge your success?
Success in the air charter business is gauged by how many hours of flight you do and not the number of flights. Royal Jet has been doing a good 70-80 hours per month of flight utilization.
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What makes Royal Jet so successful?
Not only are we offering an aircraft, the BBJ, which is the widest and most sophisticated charter aircraft available today, but also a top VIP service 24 hours a day. Our team consists of most experienced and well-trained individuals. Our profession service allows us to dispatch a flight within two and a half hours of confirmation. Last but not the least Royal Jet is headed by a very strong and experienced managing team comprising of Ali Ahmed Al
Naqbi, as Managing Director and Capt.Tilmann Gabriel as the CEO.
Do you have any special offers?
Price of a normal BBJ in the international market per hour is $US 10,000.Royal Jet is currently offering very good introductory rates of $US 6000 per hour to its launch customers. We are also expecting to sell the Gulf Streams at $US 5,500 to 6,000 per hour.
As part of our service, we are also offering a limousine pick up and drop off for our clients in UAE. We have also agreed upon doing a limousine service using the helicopter services of our partner Abu Dhabi Aviation.
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