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Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain – Gulf Air, the national carrier of the Kingdom of Bahrain has signed a ground handling services contract with Swissport Saudi Arabia, a subsidiary of Swissport International, the world’s leading provider of ground and air cargo services to the aviation industry. The agreement sees Swissport Saudi Arabia provide ground handling services for Gulf Air’s Saudi operations in all of: King Khaled International Airport in Riyadh, King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah and King Fahd International Airport in Dammam.
Commenting on the agreement, Gulf Air Chief Operating Officer Captain Nasser Al Salmi said: “This is a positive development in support of Gulf Air’s operations in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia giving our passengers more choice and ensuring greater ease of travel when flying to and from our destinations in the Kingdom. We look forward to reaping the rewards of this agreement and further strengthening our relationship with Swissport Saudi Arabia.”
Swissport Saudi Arabia’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Thomas Bommer stated "We are proud to be able to assist Gulf Air with professional ground handling services. A key feature of the collaboration with Gulf Air will be a high degree of customer focus and innovation that we intend to bring to the operation. We see a great potential for continuing to expand this partnership in the future as well.” To ready the organization across the Kingdom Swissport International has brought in a sizeable number of ground support equipment and recruited an additional 250 experienced aviation staff, besides strengthening the current set-up with a number of key position appointments.
Swissport International provides Gulf Air with comprehensive ground handling services including passenger and ramp handling, baggage services, operations coordination and load control. The agreement with Gulf Air followed a rigorous selection process and sees Bahrain’s national carrier become the second Gulf carrier to appoint Swissport Saudi Arabia for its ground handling services in the Kingdom.
Gulf Air operates one of the largest networks in the Middle East, with double daily flights or more to 10 regional cities, in addition to select destinations in the Indian Subcontinent and Europe, from its hub at Bahrain International Airport. Bahrain’s national carrier offers over 90 weekly flights to 5 destinations in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in addition to regularly providing seasonal frequency and schedule enhancements that cater to greater passenger movement to and from the Kingdom.
About Swissport International
Swissport is the world's largest provider of ground and cargo handling services in the aviation industry. The company provides services on behalf of some 835 client-companies and handles around 230 million passengers and 3.9 million flights (movements) per year. The company operates around 120 warehouses and moves approx. 4.1 million tonnes of cargo. With a workforce of around 61,000 personnel, Swissport is active at more than 280 stations in 48 countries across five continents, and generates annual consolidated operating revenue of CHF 3.0 billion.
About Gulf Air
Gulf Air, the national carrier of the Kingdom of Bahrain, commenced operations in 1950, becoming one of the first commercial airlines established in the Middle East. Today, Gulf Air is a major international carrier serving 40 cities in 23 countries spanning three continents. The airline operates one of the largest networks in the Middle East, with double daily flights or more to 10 regional cities, in addition to select destinations in the Indian Subcontinent and Europe, from its hub at Bahrain International Airport. Gulf Air serves all its destinations with a combination wide and narrow body fleet totalling 28 modern aircraft. Renowned for its traditional Arabian hospitality, evidenced by the airline’s signature family and business friendly products, Gulf Air is committed to being an industry leader and developing products and services that reflect the evolving needs and aspirations of its passengers.
Gulf Air connects Bahrain to the world and, as such, is a key national infrastructure asset, serving as a powerful driver for the economy and supporting the Kingdom’s on-going economic growth.
Gulf Air has been the Title Sponsor of the FORMULA 1 GULF AIR BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX ever since it made history as the first Formula 1 Grand Prix to be held in the Middle East in 2004. In addition, the airline has been Official Carrier of the biennial Bahrain International Airshow since it was first held in 2010.
For more information please contact:
Swissport International Ltd.
Corporate Communications
Antonietta Fabrizio
P.O. Box
CH-8058 Zurich-Airport
corporate.communications@swissport.com
+41 43 815 00 00
For media enquiries, please contact:
Azza Mubarak Matar
Senior Manager Communications
Gulf Air Tel: +973 17338765 / +973 39652012
Email: Azza.Matar@gulfair.com
© Press Release 2016
