Asiana Airlines appoints general sales agent

The announcement follows a meeting between Mr Young Koo Cho, Regional Manager, Asiana Airlines and Mr Ibrahim Sharaf, President of the Sharaf Group where the General Sales Agency agreement was signed.

"We are delighted to appoint Sharaf Travel as our General Sales Agent in the Gulf area and part of Middle East." said Mr Young Koo Cho, Regional Manager, Asiana Airlines.

Commenting on the new partnership with Asiana Airlines, Mr Ibrahim Sharaf said:

"It is a great honour for Sharaf Travel to represent Asiana Airlines from Korea, here in the UAE and other designated countries. Currently Asiana Airlines is an offline carrier, but has the intention of flying to Dubai in April 2009."

Asiana Airlines commenced operation in 1988 as the flag carrier in Korea. Asiana's main goal, has been to offer passengers the highest safety and service standards. With the aim of guiding every thought and action of its employees, Asiana adopted the term "Uncompromising Safety" as the main theme of its mission statement. With its young fleet of 61 aircraft, Asiana today serves 45 cities in 15 countries, including 18 destinations within Korea. As the largest connection between mainland China and the rest of the world, Asiana focuses not only on playing a significant role in covering all major Asian destinations, but is also expanding its global network coverage.

Sharaf Travel was established in 1991, by brothers Ibrahim Sharaf and Sharafuddin Sharaf, with the primary aim to provide quality travel services to business and leisure travelers. Today, Sharaf Travel is a well established and progressive travel agency operating in the United Arab Emirates and Oman.

Sharaf Travel also represents various leisure travel products including cruises, tourism boards and special interest brands such as student travel. In 2007 Sharaf Travel was appointed as the exclusive accredited space office in the Middle East for Virgin Galactic, the world's first commercial space line.