Gulf Air has announced that operations will continue in the event of a war on Iraq. To ensure the security of its operations, a range of contingency plans has been put in place to guarantee that services continue normally as far as possible through the airline’s global network.
“The Civil Aviation Authorities in Bahrain, Abu Dhabi and Oman, have confirmed that the airports at our key hubs will remain open in the event of conflict in the region,” said President and Chief Executive of Gulf Air, James Hogan.
Gulf Air, like all other airlines, does not fly over Iraq, or any airspace defined as a war zone, or in proximity to the conflict area. Given that these areas of airspace are dynamic, they are continuously revisited and amended by the international civil aviation organization to ensure that they are safe and secure.
Whilst the majority of Gulf Air routes will continue to operate normally, those routes serving the Mediterranean will be slightly longer following routes published by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), which circumnavigate the area of conflict, thereby ensuring maximum safety for our passengers and aircraft.
Despite the threat of crisis, figures for the year to date show an increase in traffic levels with bookings, including those out of Europe, significantly up on the same period last year, and there are strong indications that business travel demand will remain constant. — (menareport.com)
© 2003 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
