Gulf Air, the national airline of the Kingdom of Bahrain, the Sultanate of Oman and the Emirate of Abu Dhabi has published its half yearly growth figures which indicated that, despite increasing fuel costs and growing regional competition, the airline posted strong performance.
In the first six months of 2004 Gulf Air’s passengers increased by 39 per cent over the same period last year.
“Like 2003, this year has brought many challenges to the airline industry, yet we continue to see passenger growth,” said James Hogan, Gulf Air’s President and Chief Executive. “Based on our continued positive performance, we are confident of reaching our break-even target for this year.”
Major contributions to passenger growth came from Gulf Air Holidays, the airline's tour operation, which showed a 67 per cent increase in revenue over the same period last year, with passenger numbers increasing by 58 per cent.
Gulf Air’s strong performance this year is also reflected in improved key indicators with premium travel on European routes up 34 per cent, a growth in frequent flyer membership of 171 per cent and an increase of 17.2 per cent in cargo uplift. (menareport.com)
© 2004 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
