Bahrain Moves to Bring in More Budget Flights

TDT | Manama

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- Government aiming to attract more passengers

Bahrain has already begun bringing low-cost flights into the kingdom through AirAsia and Gulf Air, the transport minister told Parliament, as MPs weigh a proposal for a budget airline with the private sector.

Dr Shaikh Abdulla bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, Minister of Transportation and Telecommunications, said the ministry had taken practical steps to bring the low-cost travel model to Bahrain International Airport, aiming to draw more passengers and add routes.

The work, he said, included an agreement with AirAsia, one of the world’s large budget carriers, along with work with national carrier Gulf Air to run flights to and from Bahrain.

He said the move would give citizens and residents cheaper travel choices while fitting with government plans tied to investment, tourism and trade.

The minister was replying to a proposal by MP Mohammed Al Olaiwi calling for the government to create a budget airline in partnership with the private sector.

A joint parliamentary committee between the Financial and Economic Affairs Committee and the Public Utilities and Environment Committee has recommended approval of the proposal.

The committee said the plan could help cut air fares, make travel easier for a wider share of the public and ease the cost of trips and holidays for citizens.

It said a low-cost carrier could also bring more tourists to Bahrain by opening direct routes to promising travel markets, while giving passengers more choice and adding more rivalry in the local and Gulf aviation market.

The proposal’s explanatory note said Bahrain needed a stronger place in the region’s aviation, travel and tourism markets, with air transport playing a part in economic and social growth.

It argued that a budget carrier could serve busy, price-sensitive destinations and open routes that differ from those served by Gulf Air.

The note said the new airline would work beside Gulf Air rather than against it, with each carrier serving different parts of the market.

It also said Bahrain could draw travellers from GCC states and nearby countries by offering lower-cost flights from the kingdom, adding to transit movement and feeding trade and tourism.