Middle East & North Africa

Despite deep concerns about the availability, cost and lack of government support for Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF), IATA and its member airlines have not used the association’s 81st Annual General Meeting in Delhi to discuss delaying the 2050 target date to achieve net zero carbon emissions, the association’s Director General Willie Walsh told media at the closing press conference.

Air Arabia Abu Dhabi has launched its inaugural flight between Abu Dhabi and Almaty, Kazakhstan. Starting from June 3rd with a frequency of three weekly flights.

Emirates has expanded its East Asia footprint to 23 points with the launch of two new routes via Bangkok - Da Nang, Vietnam and Siem Reap, Cambodia.

MRO company Joramco has received the approval from the Civil Aviation Regulatory Commission (CARC) to perform line and base maintenance checks on the Embraer ERJ-190 series powered by PW1900G engine.

Etihad Airways is set to elevate its Sydney to Abu Dhabi service with the introduction of the Airbus A350-1000.

Air Arabia Abu Dhabi has launched its inaugural flight to Yerevan, Armenia.

Emirates is set to reintroduce flights to Damascus from 16 July 2025.

Etihad Cargo has launched SmartTrack, a premium service that gives customers real-time access to shipment location and condition data.

SolitAir has entered a strategic partnership with Marsh McLennan, a provider of insurance brokerage and aviation risk management services.

Emirates and Air China have signed an MoU to establish a strategic framework for expanding their existing reciprocal interline cooperation.

Geopolitical tensions on the subcontinent have spilled into civil aerospace, with Air India looking to “adjust plans” and shift maintenance work on its widebody aircraft away from Turkish Technic over Turkiye’s support for Pakistan.

Ethiopian Airlines has launched a new passenger service to Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, effective June 1, 2025.

IATA issued a clear warning about the negative consequences of trade barriers and tariffs. Jens Flottau reports from Delhi.

In its latest update on industry performance, IATA said its 2025 airline financial outlook pointed towards improved profitability from the previous year. Mark Brown reports from Delhi.

flydubai has inaugurated its operations to Syria with the resumption of flights to Damascus.

Riyadh Air, the Saudi Arabian new national carrier, is continuing to step up its partnerships ahead of its planned entry into service.

IAG Cargo, Qatar Airways Cargo and MAB Kargo Sdn Bhd (MASkargo) are to launch their joint collaboration Global Cargo Joint Business.

Emirates Airline President Tim Clark is “cautiously optimistic” about the turnaround at Boeing and its ability to deliver the first 777X to the airline in the second half of 2026 or early 2027. Jens Flottau reports.

EgyptAir has signed a deal with lessor AerCap to extend the leases on its fleet of five Boeing 777-300ERs.

Air Arabia and Al Maryah Community Bank (Mbank), the UAE’s first fully integrated digital bank, have partnered to enable the use of AE Coin payments for flight bookings through the AEC Wallet App.

Kingdom Holdings Company, a major Saudi Arabian based investment group, is in negotiations to take a substantial equity stake in Global Airlines, the UK-based start-up Airbus A380 operator.

IATA has released data for April 2025 global passenger demand, and said that the development of India’s air connectivity in recent years has been 'nothing short of phenomenal.'

Two recently delivered Gamebird GB1 aircraft have expanded Emirates Flight Training Academy’s (EFTA) fleet.

flydubai, has launched flights to four new European destinations.

flyadeal and Philippines’ carrier Cebu Pacific have signed an MoU to explore joint strategic commercial initiatives.