Air Arabia in talks to buy up to 40 planes

Air Arabia, the discount airline, said it’s in talks with Airbus SAS and Boeing Co. about buying as many as 40 short-haul planes to expand its fleet.

The Sharjah-based carrier will decide between Airbus A320-series and Boeing 737 single-aisle airliners, spokesman Housam Raydan said yesterday in a telephone interview.

Air Arabia had previously indicated it might take as many as 24 new aircraft to add to its fleet of 10 leased A320s. The order which is expected to be completed within two months, will now be for “between 34 and 40 planes to be delivered by 2016,” Raydan said, making a total of up to 50 planes.

Air Arabia, the only listed airline in the Arabian Gulf, sold 55 per cent of the company in March in an initial share sale, raising 2.57 billion dirhams ($699 million) to help fund expansion. The airline listed its shares in Dubai on July 16.

“With a potential order of this magnitude a second hub looks entirely likely,” Richard Pinkham, an analyst at the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation in Singapore, said in telephone interview.

Arab airlines may boost their combined fleet by more than 60 per cent to 900 planes by 2015, according to the Arab Carriers Organisation. The Middle East recorded a 15 per cent increase in passenger numbers last year, according to the International Air Transport Association.

Air Arabia, was founded in 2003 on the low-cost model pioneered by Southwest Airlines Co., competes with Kuwait-based Jazeera Airways which also has a second hub in Dubai. Air Arabia flies to 35 destinations including Iran, Afghanistan and Nepal.


Air Arabia, the discount airline, said it’s in talks with Airbus SAS and Boeing Co. about buying as many as 40 short-haul planes to expand its fleet.

The Sharjah-based carrier will decide between Airbus A320-series and Boeing 737 single-aisle airliners, spokesman Housam Raydan said yesterday in a telephone interview.

Air Arabia had previously indicated it might take as many as 24 new aircraft to add to its fleet of 10 leased A320s. The order which is expected to be completed within two months, will now be for “between 34 and 40 planes to be delivered by 2016,” Raydan said, making a total of up to 50 planes.

Air Arabia, the only listed airline in the Arabian Gulf, sold 55 per cent of the company in March in an initial share sale, raising 2.57 billion dirhams ($699 million) to help fund expansion. The airline listed its shares in Dubai on July 16.

“With a potential order of this magnitude a second hub looks entirely likely,” Richard Pinkham, an analyst at the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation in Singapore, said in telephone interview.

Arab airlines may boost their combined fleet by more than 60 per cent to 900 planes by 2015, according to the Arab Carriers Organisation. The Middle East recorded a 15 per cent increase in passenger numbers last year, according to the International Air Transport Association.

Air Arabia, was founded in 2003 on the low-cost model pioneered by Southwest Airlines Co., competes with Kuwait-based Jazeera Airways which also has a second hub in Dubai. Air Arabia flies to 35 destinations including Iran, Afghanistan and Nepal.


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