Issue 16

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               REGION: INDIAN SUBCONTINENT

• BANGLADESH • BHUTAN •INDIA • NEPAL • PAKISTAN • SRI LANKA 

Cyprus Airways’ first non-stop flight from Dubai lands in Colombo

Martinair starts passenger operations from Sharjah

The first Cyprus Airways’ non-stop flight, CY 396, took off from Dubai International Airport to Colombo on November 19 and touched down at Bandarnaike International, marking the airline’s first flight to the Indian sub-continent.
"This is an important day for all of us at Cyprus Airways, who have worked so hard to make this route a reality and we look forward to its success," said Stavros Kyprianou, Cyprus Airways’ Mid East and Gulf Chief.


The twice-weekly flights will be operational on Wednesdays and Saturdays with Airbus A320 aircraft. "We have received a very positive response from the market which justifies the introduction of these flights," said C K Hussain, Gulf Manager, Cyprus Airways. "Our flights for next month look particularly promising and we can safely assume an exciting new year," he added.
The flights, originating in Larnaca, will stop in Dubai on both legs of the journey, which means Cyprus Airways now operates four return Dubai-Larnaca flights a week, instead of the previous two.
Meanwhile the Cypriot flag carrier has announced a special introductory Dhs 1,150 fare on return economy tickets to Colombo valid until April 30, 2004 - one of the most competitive in the market.



Martinair, a Dutch passenger and cargo carrier operating intercontinental routes started its passenger operation from Sharjah International Airport on October 9, 2003. This operation involves mainly leisure passengers transiting at Sharjah enroute from Amsterdam Schipol Airport to their holiday destination Katmandu in Nepal effective November 2003. Martinair will also operate scheduled services from Amsterdam to Colombo (Sri Lanka) and charter services to Goa (India) via Sharjah.
Martinair, who has traffic rights to uplift passengers at Sharjah for Katmandu will commence with two flights per week (SHJ-KTM and KTM- SHJ) and will increase it’s frequency six flights per week (SHJ-GOI, GOI-SHJ and SHJ-CMB, CMB-SHJ).
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines has been appointed as Martinair’s passenger sales agent for the United Arab Emirates. Transport of Cargo will be continued by Martinair cargo from their regional hub for the Middle East and Asia based here at Sharjah International Airport.
Dr. Ghanem Al Hajri, Director General, Sharjah Airport Authority, referred to inception of Martinair’s passenger flights as another testimony of the quality of facilities and handling provided to international airlines who accept nothing but the most stringent of quality levels of service.

Emirates SkyCargo Pakistan breaks record

Emirates SkyCargo's Pakistan station is fast picking up, hauling a record-breaking 29 tonnes of cargo in the belly of the Airbus 330-200 passenger aircraft, soon after it launched the triple daily to Karachi. Leaving Karachi for Dubai, the cargo consisted of some dry shipment but mainly of sweet ripe mangoes, a very popular export from Pakistan to European destinations. This shipment broke the previous record held by the Johannesburg station, which had lifted 28 tonnes of cargo in an A330-200 in Feb 2001.

Peter Sedgley, Vice President,Cargo Commercial Operations, Emirates Airline, said 'Congratulations to the

entire SkyCargo Karachi team for achieving this worldwide record across our Emirates stations. This is an example of initiative and tremendous teamwork.'

Fallahuddin Malik, Cargo Manager – Pakistan, Emirates Airline, while full of praise for the team said, 'SkyCargo's operation in Pakistan has grown tremendously over the years. It can be attributed to the consistent quality of our products and services and the tailor-made solutions that we have been able to deliver to our customers over these years. We are excited about our new services to Moscow and the planned start of services to Auckland on 1st August.'

Pakistan, one of Emirates' first destinations when it started operations in 1985, continues to expand its operations. Currently, Emirates operates a total of 32 flights a week between Dubai and Pakistan – 21 flights to Karachi, four to Lahore, five to Islamabad and two flights to Peshawar.

Emirates SkyCargo's route network spans the globe, and together with its fast onward connections and dedicated freighter operations, customers take advantage of its network linking Europe, Middle East, Africa, Indian subcontinent and the Far East.

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