By Rafiq Vayani DOHA: Official World Tourism Day (WTD) celebrations got underway in Qatar today for the very first time, held under the patronage of Qatar’s Prime Minister and Minister of Interior His Excellency Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani. Hundreds of tourism industry stakeholders from around the world flew to Doha to explore the significant role sustainable …

BIZ TODAY REPORT DUBAI: Emirates clinched the Passenger Choice award for Best Entertainment at the 2017 APEX Passenger Choice Awards held in Long Beach, California, USA this week. Emirates’ president, Sir Tim Clark, was honoured with the CEO Lifetime Achievement Award. The airline also won Best Original Video for its Welcome to ice product video and was given a Five-Star Global Airline Official Airline Rating, the highest rating in …

MUSCAT: Oman Air, the national carrier of the Sultanate of Oman, was awarded for the second year in row as “Best Airline in Europe, Middle East and Africa” within the Seven Stars Luxury Lifestyle and Hospitality Awards 2017. The ceremony took place last Saturday 23rd September 2017 during an official ceremony and prestigious gala dinner at “The Ecali Club” in …

DUBAI: HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, attended the maiden concept flight of the Autonomous Air Taxi (AAT), a vehicle that will be used for the world’s first self-flying taxi service set to be introduced by Dubai’s Road and Transport Authority (RTA). The two-seater AAT, capable of transporting people without human intervention or …

DUBAI: Emirates today announced that it will introduce three additional flights per week to the Swedish capital, complementing Emirates’ existing schedule and providing more choice to travellers from 8th December 2017. The new scheduled flights will be added to meet the growing demand for travel on the route, particularly during the winter season. Since launching its current daily scheduled service …

BIZ TODAY REPORT DUBAI: The Dubai Mall, the world’s largest and most-visited retail and entertainment attraction by Emaar Malls (DFM: EMAAR MALLS), has set a model in urban waste management by facilitating the production of 26 tonnes of compost from the waste collected from the mall’s food outlets. This is the first-of-its-kind initiative by a mall in the UAE and …

LONDON: British Airways has become the first airline worldwide to introduce high-tech remote controlled devices to push back aircraft across its short-haul operation. The airline is modernising its operation to maintain and further improve punctuality for its customers. In partnership with Heathrow, the eco-friendly Mototok tugs will allow British Airways staff to prepare aircraft for departure more efficiently. The airline …

BIZ TODAY REPORT MANAMA: German media representatives were recently invited to visit the Sri Lankan capital city of Colombo as part of a collaboration between Gulf Air, the Kingdom of Bahrain’s national carrier, and Onyx Hospitality Group, a leading hotel management company in Asia. The 6-day visit saw guests experience the comforts of flying with Gulf Air, residing at leading …

By Rafiq Vayani ADDIS ABABA / SÃO PAULO: Africa’s largest airline group, Ethiopian Airlines and Azul Brazilian Airlines have entered a codeshare agreement effective Oct, 01, 2017. Through the codeshare partnership Ethiopian Airlines will add its flight code (ET) in Azul’s operations; hence, customers will be able to purchase tickets directly from Ethiopian Airlines sales channels to fly to seven …

BIZ TODAY REPORT DUBAI: Emirates has reaffirmed its commitment to Tunis by increasing the frequency of flights between Dubai and Tunis from six to seven a week starting 30th October 2017. The additional Dubai – Tunis flight will be operated every Monday with an Emirates Boeing 777-300ER aircraft offering eight luxurious private suites in First Class, 42 lie-flat seats in …