ALAN GEORGE / LONDON
MenaJet, the Middle East's first no-frills airline, will start operations from Sharjah International airport in December using two 162-seat Airbus A320s.
The company, capitalised at $50 million, is a 50:50 venture between Bahrain-based Gulf Finance House and Al Zamil Group, one of Saudi Arabia's leading business and industrial conglomerates.
MenaJet's general manager, former investment banker Mazen Hajjar, declines to specify initial routes ahead of formal agreements, but it is thought that they will include Bahrain and Beirut. Later destinations could include Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, Syria and Yemen.
Not all destinations will be capital cities. "We'll base ourselves especially on the Southwest Airlines model," says Hajjar. "We want to fly people out of their own natural catchment area."
As well as finalising arrangements for its first routes, MenaJet is close to signing a comprehensive corporate branding contract with an international firm, adds Hajjar.
"In the past, inter-Arab travel has been limited by a deficiency of traditional transport modes other than traditional airlines. We hope to bridge that gap," he says. "There'll be some business travellers, but most will be leisure, including spur-of-the-moment travellers and vacation home owners."
Source: Flight International
