RAK Airways to start operations in April

Speaking on the sidelines of the RAK Development Conference 2007 which concluded here yesterday, Jack Romero said that the airline has received its air operating certificate from the General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) of UAE.

"We have received the air operating certificate from the GCAA and we are aiming to start flying in April, as soon as we get the traffic rights to India and Iran," he said.

He said that the airline will begin operations by using two leased Boeing 757- 200 aircraft. The initial aircraft is only six years old and was previously operated and maintained by Iberia, the national carrier of Spain. RAK Airways will have a two- class configuration in its flights, offering business and economy classes.

"The airline expects to undertake flights to Mumbai, Delhi, Trivandrum, Kochi and Bangalore in India and destinations such as Tehran, Esfahan and Bandar Abbas in Iran in the first phase,"

he said.

On the airline's ambitious expansion strategy Jack Romero said, "We are looking to expand by at least two aircraft annually to service the Indian sub-continent, including Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan. By the second year, we will service Russia and CIS countries and in the third year we will open up Europe, including Germany, France, Italy, UK and Scandinavian countries".

He added that the pilots and cabin crew of the airline are being trained by Lufthansa and will be ready for duty by March 15 and said that the airline reservation system, aiRES, will be tested live next week.

He said that the airline would use leased aircraft for the first three years, operating around six aircrafts by that time, and would go for purchasing new aircraft from then on.

The airline expects to fly 230,000 passengers in its first year of operations and aims to carry 580, 000 passengers by the third year. "According to our very conservative estimates, we will be carrying 2.7 million passengers in five years", he said. The airline would offer complimentary food and drinks as part of the on-board service and will offer generous baggage allowance of up to 45 kg on selected routes".

Jack Romero said that RAK Airways would launch a dedicated cargo division in four year's time with its own dedicated management team and aircraft.

"We are also exploring the possibility of joining global alliances to boost growth and expand coverage as part of our long term growth strategy," he added.

The airline would have a multi- channel distribution facility that would enable passenger's book tickets through internet, travel agents or by using call centres and future developments may include SMS.

RAK Airways is a Private Joint Stock Company incorporated in RAK Investment Authority Free Zone having a startup capital of AED 850 million.