Middle East & North Africa

The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has re-elected Hamad Salem Al Muhairi, Assistant Director, General of the Aviation Security Affairs Sector at the UAE General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), as Chairperson of the ICAO Aviation Security Panel for the third consecutive year.

Qatar Airways and Virgin Australia have launched “Dine on Us” – a complimentary dining programme for passengers travelling through Doha to and from Australia.

Etihad Airways has welcomed its sixth A350 to its growing fleet.

Almaty, Ankara Esenboğa, Batumi, Madinah, İzmir, Riga, Tbilisi, and Skopje airports, operated by Turkey’s TAV Airports, were recognised among the best in the world in the Skytrax World Airport Awards.

Etihad Cargo has expanded its capacity to meet increasing customer demand in Greater China.

Flyadeal has appointed European airline executive Rogier van Enk as chief commercial and customer officer.

Etihad Airways is expanding its global network yet further with the launch of flights to Peshawar, Pakistan, starting 29 September 2025.

Intelligent power management company Eaton signed an agreement with Air Support to provide local repair and overhaul of Eaton’s engine fuel components for large commercial aircraft.

At the Aircraft Interiors Expo (AIX), Dubai-based carrier flydubai and Boeing announced an agreement to retrofit 21 of flydubai’s 737 MAX aircraft with larger Boeing Space Bins.

Satair and Collins Aerospace, an RTX business, have signed a four-year extension of their cabin interior parts distribution agreement, continuing a 50-year relationship.

Dubai World Central-headquartered air cargo operator SolitAir has officially received its Air Operator Certificate (AOC) from the General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA).

Emirates will be introducing its newest Airbus A380s fitted with its latest cabins, including Premium Economy, to Manchester and Milan.

Saudi Arabia welcomed 30 million international visitors in 2024, representing a 9.5 percent increase from the previous year.

Matarat Holding has signed an MoU with SITA to accelerate the digital transformation of airports across the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Riyadh Air will be the first airline to launch Panasonic Avionics’ fully integrated in-flight engagement (IFE) interactive design and publishing tool - Modular Interactive (MI).

Qatar Airways will be launching three additional flights to Manchester, UK, from 4 June 2025.

Qatar Airways, which offers Starlink’s high-speed internet on-board, is now close to completing its Boeing 777 fleet-wide upgrade.

Mediterranean Aviation Services (MAS) has been officially recognition as an IATA Ground Handling Partner (GHP).

Panasonic Avionics has unveiled ConverixTM, an open and neutral application hosting platform that the company said will transform commercial aviation.

Turkish Airlines has added Ohrid, one of the North Macedonia’s key tourism destinations, to its flight network.

GE Aerospace has entered a five-year agreement with Royal Jordanian (RJ) to support the airline’s comprehensive suite of Software as a Service (SaaS) solutions.

Turkish Airlines said it is committed to bringing free unlimited inflight connectivity to all passengers starting from late 2025.

Emirates has joined the Aviation Circularity Consortium (ACC), along with SL Metals, with the aim to unlock the circular economy for aviation.

RoyalJet, the Abu Dhabi-based private jet operator, has appointed of Rakesh Raj as its new vice-president for finance.

SITA and NEC Corporation (NEC) have signed an agreement to accelerate the adoption of digital identity technology in the travel industry.