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UAE carrier Flydubai said on Wednesday that it has already ramped up its manpower and is set to expand its fleet this summer to support its growth strategy.
The low-cost airline has been restoring its global network and launching new services in response to the reopening of borders in key destinations.
This summer will be “the busiest” in the airline’s history, with about three million passengers scheduled to travel with Flydubai and an average of 8,500 flights per month to be operated across 102 destinations, exceeding pre-pandemic levels.
By August 2022, the airline said it will take delivery of four new aircraft. This will expand the number of Boeing 737s to 68 aircraft, up by 73 percent compared to the fleet size in the same period in 2019, the airline said in a statement.
Flydubai’s workforce has also grown by 20 percent, with several pilots, cabin crew and other professionals from 135 nationalities hired over the past 12 months.
“Our recruitment drive will continue throughout the year,” the airline said.
Airlines are expected to perform better this year, with industry-wide losses forecast to narrow down to $9.7 billion this year, an improvement from the $137.7 billion losses in 2021, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
Revenues from passengers will account for $498 billion of industry revenues, more than double the $239 billion generated last year, while passenger numbers are likely to reach 3.8 billion and revenue passenger kilometres to grow by 97.6 percent compared with last year.
(Reporting by Cleofe Maceda; editing by Seban Scaria)
