Flydubai takes delivery of first EX-IM Bank financed aircraft

Its arrival takes flydubai's fleet size to 26 aircraft in operation. The next two aircraft will arrive in November and December, meaning by the end of 2012, the airline will have 28 aircraft.

Over the last three years since flydubai launched it has successfully financed its fleet primarily through sale and leaseback agreements and market appetite for similar funding to flydubai remains strong. This deal is an endorsement that flydubai has reached a level of maturity and size that other financing sources can be accessed.

flydubai's financial position, its sustainable growth and achievements are additional important factors in demonstrating that this is also the right time to explore alternative financing opportunities. Moreover, it represents a first financing for Ex-Im Bank of Boeing aircraft to flydubai.

This year has also witnessed significant network expansion with the addition of six new routes to date (Bucharest, Sana'a, Basra, Najaf, Bishkek and Taif) and a further two to follow: Skopje, the capital of Macedonia is scheduled to launch on 18 October and Tabuk, Saudi Arabia on 07 November.

In addition to these new routes, there has been a 41% increase in the number of flights across the network between August 2011 and August of this year. This, coupled with the airline's established reliability, has created far more flexibility for both business and leisure travellers.

Flydubai's CEO, Ghaith Al Ghaith, said: "This landmark agreement with Ex-Im Bank is further proof of flydubai'scontinued achievements. In our short history we have already achieved a great deal but what is truly exciting for us is that we have only just begun.

"Dubai's reputation is firmly established on the world stage as a popular tourist destination, a financial centre and a trade and logistics hub. Its visionary decision to invest in becoming a leading global aviation hub and the fact that there is a population of over 2.5 billion within our geographic reach is a scenario that creates tremendous opportunity for us as an airline and we intend to fully capitalise on this.

"The Ex-Im Bank agreement, as important as it is, ultimately represents just another step on our journey.I can also state with conviction that as we grow we remain absolutely committed to delivering an experience defined by affordable fares across our network and giving our customers as much choice as possible."

flydubai operates from Terminal 2 on the north side of Dubai International Airport, which is currently the fourth largest in the world by passenger traffic.
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About flydubai:
Established in March 2008, flydubai is Dubai's first low-cost airline and the fastest growing start-up airline in the world. Since commencing operations in June 2009, the airline has established an operational route network of more than 45 destinations across the GCC, Middle East, North Africa, Indian Subcontinent, Asia and Central & Eastern Europe and has built up fleet of 26 aircraft. Owned by the Government of Dubai, the low-cost carrier supports the city's commercial and tourism sectors by serving all travellers and providing them with affordable air links to a range of destinations. The airline is dedicated to quality service and comfortable travel, lowering costs by optimising operational efficiencies and offering the passenger more choice.flydubai Cargo started operations on 1 January 2012 and operates within the flydubai passenger network as well as to 25 offline stations.