Gulf Air considers "strategic partnerships" with other carriers

Gulf Air CEO, Samer Majali, announced the carrier is open to considering "strategic partnerships" with other carriers (Arabian Business, 01-Sep-09). Mr Majali added the carrier may seek a reduction in staff, however, in a "manageable format".

Gulf Air: "The main target now is not to make a loss...How long will that take? Well, five years is too long, one year is too short. Can we stop making a loss in three years? I don't know. That would be making promises that I don't know if I can keep. Target one is to get the airline of a solid commercial footing and to improve the quality of our service so Gulf Air is a very good carrier. That has to be done first, but if this could be supported by getting into stronger codeshares or even alliances, or potentially a strategic partnership with another airline, that is something we are looking at. You need a like-minded airline. It has to make commercial sense." Samer Majali, CEO. Source: Arabian Business, 01-Sep-09.