No frills carrier flyDubai launches Sanaa service travel

UAE-based low-cost airline flyDubai has commenced flights to Yemeni capital Sana'a this week. The state-owned carrier, which operates in and out of the Middle East, will fly four times weekly to the city, one of the oldest inhabited places in the world. The new route will bring flyDubai’s total operational network to 29 countries across the GCC, Middle East, Africa, Indian subcontinent, Asia and parts of eastern Europe. “We hope that this new service will play a significant role in developing business opportunites and open the door to more exports between the two nations,” said CEO Ghaith Al Ghaith. The company’s COO, Hamad Obaidalla, added that the firm wanted to connect Dubai to destinations that have previously been under-served in their UAE links. The cost of a return flight from Dubai to Sana’a will start at Dh1175 (US$320) inclusive of taxes, the carrier said. No frills flyDubai is the latest Middle East carrier to start routes to post-revolution countries coming out of the Arab Spring unrest. In January, Etihad became one of the first regional carriers to launch flights to the Libyan capital of Tripoli, in the hopes of attracting business and leisure travelers.