Air Arabia Egypt

LCCs grab 10% of seats in the Middle East, but growth is slowing

The LCC phenomenon in the Middle East is entering the home stretch of its first decade. The importance of the LCC market in the Middle East has grown steadily since the launch of the region’s first LCC flights by Air Arabia in Oct-2003, but the growth has not been as high as initially anticipated, as carriers can attest to.

Just four airlines make up the regional LCC market – Air Arabia, flydubai, Jazeera Airways and NAS Air. Air Arabia also has two subsidiary carriers – Air Arabia Maroc, launched in 2007, and Air Arabia Egypt, launched in 2010. A third, based in Jordan, has been on hold for several years.

There are also some smaller carriers in the region that are filling the gap between LCCs and full service airlines. Bahrain Air markets itself as a “premium value” carrier, including some LCC elements in its model but also offering two seating classes – including an all-new business class cabin – and a correspondingly greater emphasis on service and product levels. RAK Airways, based in the UAE emirate of Ras Al Khaimah, also has low cost elements, but like Bahrain Air has adopted a hybrid model between full service and low-cost airlines.

JAL eyes domestic LCC; Qantas moots cuts as fuel bites; IATA reports shares drop 10%

Japan Airlines – which officially emerged from court-promoted bankruptcy this week – has a domestic LCC on its radar with Jetstar the most likely partner. Jetstar will reportedly outline the business case for the Japanese to the Qantas board in coming weeks, according to reports in Japan and Australia.

Egypt unrest: Aviation in North Africa and Middle East threatened by political turmoil

The political instability engulfing some North African states has extensive implications for tourism and aviation across the region. Already dozens of governments are warning their citizens to avoid travel to Egypt. Several have chartered aircraft to ferry their nationals out. Cairo Airport has been met with chaotic scenes in the past few days as thousands of foreigners seek to leave. In this special report, CAPA reviews the immediate aviation and tourism impacts from the North Africa/Middle East civil unrest.

Airlines: surviving in a changing world. CAPA's Hottest Airlines to Watch in 2011

As the international airline industry evolves from a heavily protected, government-run activity into a commercial hybrid, individual airlines are confronted by massive challenges, each of them unique to the company concerned. At the same time, the industry overall remains constantly at risk from any number of external threats.