Royal Jordanian inaugurated on March 23rd its scheduled flights to Washington DC from Amman, to be operated with Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft configured for 270 passengers in two classes (24 seats in Business Class and 246 seats in Economy Class). The Jordanian airline will have twice-weekly services on this route, making it the only operator between the two capitals, as well as in the Jordan-US market.

Washington Dulles Airport becomes RJ’s fourth destination in the United States and the sixth in the Americas, taking into account its two connections in Canada. All these operations are performed by Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner jets.

Tuesday and Saturday

• RJ 282  Amman AMM 11:45 · 17:45 IAD Washington DC
• RJ 283  Washington DC IAD 20:50 · 15:25+1 AMM Amman

“We extend a warm welcome to Royal Jordanian Airlines at Washington Dulles International Airport, the U.S. National Capital Region’s premier international gateway,” said Westerlund, Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority executive vice president and chief revenue officer. “Royal Jordanian’s new nonstop service to Amman will deepen ties between our two capitals. This route provides an important connection for government, business and tourism between Washington, D.C., and the Middle East, which is an important and growing market for Dulles International.”

Chicago, Detroit, Montreal, New York JFK, Toronto and Washington DC are part of Royal Jordanian’s regular North American network:

• Chicago (ORD): 7 weekly · RJ 263/264
• Detroit (DTW): 3 weekly · RJ 267/268
• Montreal (YUL): 2 weekly · RJ 271/272
• New York (JFK): 3 weekly · RJ 261/262
• Toronto (YYZ) via YUL: 2 weekly · RJ 271/272
• Washington DC (IAD): 2 weekly · RJ 282/283

“Our upcoming first flight between the two capitals, Washington, D.C., and Amman, marks a significant milestone in RJ’s global expansion strategy, making this the fourth U.S. city we fly directly to,” stated Royal Jordanian CEO Mr. Samer Majali. “By linking these two dynamic markets, we aim to stimulate tourism, trade and investment opportunities. This crucial connection provides seamless connectivity to the Gulf, Levant and North Africa, reinforcing our commitment to providing exceptional service and connecting people across the globe, aligning with RJ’s five-year expansion strategy.”

Emirates to expand its network by Airbus A350

The UAE airline has announced that it will increase its services with Airbus A350-900s configured for 312 passengers in three classes, as it will begin operating to Africa and expand its presence in Asia, Europe and the Middle East. These new flights will join Bologna and Lyon, other confirmed routes to be conducted on A350s.

Emirates has four Airbus A350-900s in its fleet, being Ahmedabad, Bahrain, Colombo, Edinburgh, Kuwait City and Mumbai their destinations.

Routes

• Amman (AMM): June 1st
• Bologna (BLQ): June 1st
• Lyon (LYS): June 1st
• Tunis (TUN): June 1st
• Dammam (DMM): July 1st
• Istanbul (IST): July 1st
• Ho Chi Minh City (SGN): August 1st
• Baghdad (BGW): August 3rd
• Oslo (OSL): September 1st

Adnan Kazim, Deputy President and Chief Commercial Officer, Emirates Airline said: “Our strategic A350 expansion across diverse geographies in the Middle East/GCC, Europe, Africa and Southeast Asia leverages the aircraft’s operational flexibility and efficiency, while offering more customers expanded premium travel options and the opportunity to experience our latest generation interiors like Business Class and Premium Economy along with plenty of thoughtful touches throughout every cabin, now available in more cities than ever before.”

He added: “The introduction of this aircraft and layering it on existing route schedules also enables Emirates to maintain a compelling competitive position as the airline of choice for discerning travellers looking for a unique slate of connectivity options and elevated onboard experiences they can’t have with any other carrier.”

Air France to restart flights to Riyadh

The French airline has confirmed through a press release it intends to start its seasonal flights between Paris Charles de Gaulle and Riyadh on May 19th, which it last operated in early 2019.

At the time of publication, according to its website, Air France plans to fly three times a week during May, scheduling to nearly double frequencies from June.

Monday, Wednesday and Friday

• AF 684  Paris CDG 23:20 · 06:25+1 RUH Riyadh

Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday

• AF 685  Riyadh RUH 08:40 · 14:20 CDG Paris

As of June 1st, the airline expects to add flights on Tuesdays and Saturdays on the CDG-RUH leg, and on Wednesdays and Sundays on the RUH-CDG segment.

Dubai its Air France’s only current destination in the Middle East, offered to/from Paris Charles de Gaulle International Airport.

flydubai strengthens its international schedule

In mid-March, flydubai launched three international routes from Dubai International Airport, to be flown by Boeing 737-800 and Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft.

The three new flydubai destinations, Bushehr, Qeshm and Tabriz, are located in Iran, bringing the airline’s total number of scheduled routes between the UAE and Iran, operating from/to DXB, to 12.

Flydubai surpasses 130 regular destinations from Dubai, with 97 of them being only performed by the airline.

Dubai – Bushehr · March 13th

Monday and Thursday

• FZ 281  Dubai DXB 06:50 · 08:00 BUZ Bushehr
• FZ 281  Bushehr BUZ 09:00 · 11:10 DXB Dubai

Dubai – Tabriz · March 13th

Monday and Thursday

• FZ 227  Dubai DXB 13:30 · 16:00 TBZ Tabriz
• FZ 228  Tabriz TBZ 17:00 · 20:15 DXB Dubai

Dubai – Qeshm · March 14th

Wednesday and Sunday

• FZ 271  Dubai DXB 07:00 · 07:30 GSM Qeshm Island
• FZ 272  Qeshm Island GSM 08:30 · 10:00 DXB Dubai

Flydubai routes to Iran

• Bandar (BND): 7 weekly · 738/7M8
• Bushehr (BUZ): 2 weekly · 738/7M8
• Isfahan (IFN): 4 weekly · 738/7M8
• Kerman (KER): 2 weekly · 738/7M8
• Kish (KIH): 5 weekly · 738/7M8
• Lar (LRR): 7 weekly · 738/7M8
• Mashhad (MHD): 14 (check) weekly · 738/7M8
• Qeshm (GSM): 2 weekly · Boeing 737 MAX 8
• Shiraz (SYZ): 7 weekly · Boeing 737 MAX 8
• Tabriz (TBZ): 2 weekly · 738/7M8
• Tehran (IKA): 34 weekly · 738/7M8

Jeyhun Efendi, Divisional Senior Vice President, Commercial Operations and E-commerce at flydubai, said: “As part of our longstanding commitment to connecting more underserved markets to Dubai’s aviation hub, we are pleased to offer our customers more options for travel by adding these three new destinations. Passengers travelling with us in Business Class and Economy Class can enjoy an elevated travel experience, whether they are travelling to Dubai or connecting further afield on our network.”

We review other highlights of the Africa and Middle East markets

Air Arabia Abu Dhabi

The airline will expand its international schedule with the launch of flights between Abu Dhabi and Yerevan, capital of Armenia, effective June 1st. As per its website, Air Arabia Abu Dhabi will provide a daily frequency on Airbus A320s, strengthening UAE-Armenia connectivity.

AUH – EVN

• 3L 441  Abu Dhabi AUH 14:05 · 17:25 EVN Yerevan (Mon/Tue/Wed)
• 3L 441  Abu Dhabi AUH 09:00 · 12:20 EVN Yerevan (Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun)

EVN – AUH

• 3L 442  Yerevan EVN 18:15 · 21:25 AUH Abu Dhabi (Mon/Tue/Wed)
• 3L 442  Yerevan EVN 13:10 · 16:20 AUH Abu Dhabi (Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun)

“The launch of new flights to Yerevan enhances connectivity and supports the growth of travel and tourism in the UAE. We will continue to expand our network to include key international destinations from Abu Dhabi, providing cost-effective travel options with added value for our customers”, commented Adel Al Ali, Air Arabia Group CEO.

Air Arabia Maroc

Starting April 14th, Air Arabia’s Moroccan subsidiary will commence a new domestic route. The carrier will fly twice-weekly between Rabat and Essaouira on 174-seat Airbus A320-200s with the following schedule:

Monday and Friday

• 3O 741  Rabat RBA 13:30 · 14:40 ESU Essaouira
• 3O 742  Essaouira ESU 15:20 · 16:25 RBA Rabat

Air Arabia Maroc will be the only operator on this service.

Air Tanzania

On March 26th, Air Tanzania’s inaugural flight to Kinshasa departed Dar-es-Salaam at 11:59 local time. The capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo enters Air Tanzania’s regular network, which will be operated from DAR four times per week with Airbus A220-300 aircraft.

Air Tanzania will be the sole operator on this route, offering 528 weekly seats each leg with this schedule, as the airline’s A220s are configured for 132 passengers in two classes (12 Business and 120 Economy).

DAR – FIH

• TC 224  Dar-es-Salaam DAR 11:40 · 13:20 FIH Kinshasa (Mon/Wed)
• TC 224  Dar-es-Salaam DAR 10:10 · 11:50 FIH Kinshasa (Fri/Sun)

FIH – DAR

• TC 225  Kinshasa FIH 14:20 · 22:00 DAR Dar-es-Salaam (Mon/Wed)
• TC 225  Kinshasa FIH 12:50 · 18:30 DAR Dar-es-Salaam (Fri/Sun)

Kinshasa joins Johannesburg, the new destinations launched by Air Tanzania in 2025.

Atlas Air
Not to be confused with Atlas Air of the United States.

Atlas Air, an airline based in Tehran (Iran) added two aircraft to its fleet in February.

The Iranian carrier has had a McDonnell Douglas MD-83 since mid-2022, registered EP-SAP, which has 111 seats in two classes and is 35 years old. This aircraft was part of Danish Air Transport between 2010 and 2019, performing a tour around the world from August 2013 to June 2014 for the FIFA 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

Regarding its “new” aircraft, Atlas Air took delivery in mid-February of a British Aerospace Avro RJ85, which received the Iranian registration EP-THI. It has a VIP configuration with 28 seats, and is 27 years old. As well as the Avro RJ85, the airline added the Boeing 737-3H4 with the registry EP-LEE, formerly operated by Chabahar Airlines, another Iranian company. At time of publication, according to our database, the aircraft has not yet entered service, being parked in Tehran.

Emirates

In addition to the new A350 destinations, Emirates will double its flights between Dubai and Taipei as of August 1st.

Based on its website, the carrier will expand from one to two daily services on this route, which it currently operates on Airbus A380-800s seating 491 passengers in three classes.

Daily

• EK 366  Dubai DXB 03:45 · 16:15 TPE Taipei (A388)
• EK 386  Dubai DXB 08:40 · 21:15 TPE Taipei (77W · new flight)

• EK 387  Taipei TPE 00:30 · 05:15 DXB Dubai (77W · new flight)
• EK 367  Taipei TPE 23:50 · 04:35+1 DXB Dubai (A388)

The new flight (EK 386/387) will be conducted on three-class Boeing 777-300(ER) aircraft, as stated by the airline.

Ethiopian

Abu Dhabi, Ethiopian’s new destination.

In accordance with the press release, the carrier will commence operations to Zayed International Airport from Addis Ababa effective July 15th, with Boeing 777s and Airbus A350-1000s, on a daily basis.

Ethiopian will once again fly between the capitals of Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates after nearly 30 years, making it its third regular destination to the UAE, joining Dubai and Sharjah (cargo).

Daily

• ET 614  Addis Ababa ADD 21:50 · 03:10+1 AUH Abu Dhabi
• ET 615  Abu Dhabi AUH 04:25 · 07:45 ADD Addis Ababa

Mesfin Tasew, Group CEO of Ethiopian Airlines, remarked: “We are delighted to enter into this strategic agreement with Etihad Airways. This collaboration marks a significant milestone in our efforts to enhance connectivity between Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. By leveraging our combined networks, we are committed to providing our passengers with greater travel convenience and exceptional service. This partnership underscores our dedication to fostering strong bilateral relations and promoting economic growth between Ethiopia and the UAE.”

“As part of our strategy to strengthen Ethiopian Airlines’ global presence, the launch of our new flight to Abu Dhabi marks our third destination in the UAE, following Dubai and Sharjah (Cargo). With over 120 weekly passenger and cargo services to the Middle East and Gulf states, we are committed to providing exceptional connectivity and service to both our customers.”

fastjet

The Zimbabwean airline will further increase its flights in Southern Africa starting April 9th, by launching a new service to Lusaka, capital of Zambia.

fastjet announced through a press release that it will operate three times per week with Embraer ERJ-145 aircraft configured for 50 passengers in single class.

Monday, Wednesday and Friday

• FN 8707  Harare HRE 06:00 · 06:55 LUN Lusaka
• FN 8708  Lusaka LUN 07:25 · 08:20 HRE Harare

Donahue Cortes, FastJet Zimbabwe Business CEO and Country Head, commented “No other airline gives travellers an early morning flight option on this route. Our flight timings are designed to provide both business and leisure passengers with a full day’s activities in their city of arrival. We continue to focus on developing and growing our business morning flight schedule and the Lusaka early morning departure joins other fastjet sunrise flights to Bulawayo and Johannesburg”.

FitsAir

From April 8th, the Sri Lankan airline, based in Colombo, will inaugurate a new route to the Middle East, to be provided by Airbus A320-200 aircraft.

Operations will be carried out three times weekly with the following schedule:

Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday

• 8D 851  Colombo CMB 08:15 · 11:30 RUH Riyadh
• 8D 852  Riyadh RUH 12:30 · 20:50 CMB Colombo

Riyadh will be FitsAir’s first destination in Saudi Arabia and the second in the Middle East, after Dubai International Airport (DXB/OMDB).

flydubai

As of September 14th, flydubai will expand its flights to Russia, boosting frequencies on its main route from Dubai. The airline, which operates Boeing 737-800 and Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft, will reach seven daily services.

DXB – VKO

• FZ 969  Dubai DXB 01:35 · 06:20 VKO Moscow
• FZ 989  Dubai DXB 10:45 · 15:30 VKO Moscow
• FZ 951  Dubai DXB 18:30 · 23:15 VKO Moscow
• FZ 987  Dubai DXB 19:20 · 00:05+1 VKO Moscow
• FZ 965  Dubai DXB 20:15 · 01:00+1 VKO Moscow
• FZ 975  Dubai DXB 21:40 · 02:25+1 VKO Moscow
• FZ 967  Dubai DXB 23:30 · 04:15+1 VKO Moscow

VKO – DXB

• FZ 952  Moscow VKO 00:15 · 07:00 DXB Dubai
• FZ 988  Moscow VKO 01:05 · 07:45 DXB Dubai
• FZ 966  Moscow VKO 02:00 · 08:40 DXB Dubai
• FZ 976  Moscow VKO 03:25 · 10:05 DXB Dubai
• FZ 968  Moscow VKO 05:15 · 11:55 DXB Dubai
• FZ 970  Moscow VKO 07:20 · 14:00 DXB Dubai
• FZ 990  Moscow VKO 16:30 · 23:10 DXB Dubai

New flight FZ 951/952.

flynas

The Saudi airline will launch services between Riyadh and Abu Dhabi on April 10th, to be carried out three times a week with 174-seat Airbus A320 aircraft.

Zayed International Airport will return to flynas regular schedule, which, according to its website, will be available until late May.

Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday

• XY 235  Riyadh RUH 14:35 · 17:35 AUH Abu Dhabi
• XY 236  Abu Dhabi AUH 18:45 · 19:30 RUH Riyadh

Iran Air Tour

Iran Air Tour added another aircraft to its fleet, bringing the total to 17, although not all are operational.

The Airbus A320-231, with serial number 424, joins the Iranian airline’s operations. It is registered EP-MDS and has been parked at Tehran Mehrabad International Airport since March 12th awaiting entry into service.

Iran Air Tour fleet

• Airbus A300-600: 4
• Airbus A310-300: 4
• Airbus A320-200: 2
• McDonnell Douglas MD-82: 5
• McDonnell Douglas MD-83: 1
• McDonnell Douglas MD-87: 1

Average age: 33 years

On August 13th, 1993, this Airbus A320 made its first test flight, but entered service in April 1995 when it was incorporated by Airtours International Airways. Skyservice USA, MyTravel Airways, Thomas Cook Airlines, Aeolus Air, Ariana Afghan Airlines, SEAir International, Sky Prim Air, Terra Avia, Safi Airways, Electra Airways, Enter Air, Fly Lili and Asian Express Airline were its next carriers.

Iran Air

On February 23rd at 22:22 local time, Iran Air’s first flight to Karachi departed Mashhad. These operations will be carried out by Airbus A319-100s with a capacity of 120 passengers.

Sunday/Monday

• IR 816  Mashhad MHD 20:40 · 00:30+1 KHI Karachi (Sunday)
• IR 817  Karachi KHI 01:30 · 02:35 MHD Mashhad (Monday)

Mahan Air

Following almost a year and a half parked in Mashhad, the British Aerospace RJ85, with serial number E2318, was incorporated by Mahan Air. On March 16th, it departed Mashhad for Tehran on a ferry flight, after a test flight over Iran the previous week.

As per our database, the 27-year-old aircraft, which has the registration EP-MEU, entered service on March 17th with flight W5 4336 between Tehran and Ardabil, a domestic route in the country.

Fleet

• Airbus A300-600: 1
• Airbus A340-200: 1
• Airbus A340-300: 8
• Airbus A340-600: 5
• Boeing 747-300: 1
• Boeing 747-400: 2
• British Aerospace 146-200: 1
• British Aerospace 146-300: 3
• British Aerospace Avro RJ100: 3
• British Aerospace Avro RJ85: 7
• Fokker 50: 2

The fleet averages 28 years old.

Middle East Airlines

Effective June 24th, MEA intends to start scheduled operations between Beirut and Mykonos, which it plans to provide on Airbus A320-200s, two times weekly.

BEY – JMK

• ME 257  Beirut BEY 12:20 · 14:05 JMK Mykonos (Monday)
• ME 257  Beirut BEY 15:55 · 17:40 JMK Mykonos (Wednesday)

JMK – BEY

• ME 258  Mykonos JMK 15:05 · 16:55 BEY Beirut (Monday)
• ME 258  Mykonos JMK 18:25 · 20:15 BEY Beirut (Wednesday)

Middle East Airlines currently operates to Athens from the Lebanese capital, as well as Aegean Airlines.

Pakistan International Airlines

PIA will start services between Peshawar and Riyadh beginning April 6th, with Boeing 777-200 aircraft. After almost a year and a half, the Pakistani airline will resume this route, as its last flight was on October 17th, 2023.

Sunday

• PK 727  Peshawar PEW 07:20 · 09:45 RUH Riyadh
• PK 728  Riyadh RUH 11:30 · 17:00 PEW Peshawar

Islamabad, Lahore and Multan are PIA’s current destination from/to Riyadh King Khalid International Airport.

Ryanair

The European low-cost carrier will expand its services within Morocco with a new domestic route in the country.

According to its website, Ryanair will fly between Tangier and Beni Mellal on Boeing 737-800s seating 189 passengers in single class.

Tuesday and Saturday

• FR 9782  Tangier TNG 04:55 · 06:05 BEM Beni Mellal
• FR 9783  Beni Mellal BEM 07:30 · 08:40 TNG Tangier

Beni Mellal will become Ryanair’s 21st destination in Tangier, where it has a base. Meanwhile, BEM will be added to the low cost carrier’s regular schedule.

Ryanair’s domestic routes in Morocco

• Agadir (AGA) – Fes (FEZ): 2 weekly · Boeing 737-800
• Agadir (AGA) – Oujda (OUD): 2 weekly · Boeing 737-800
• Marrakech (RAK) – Errachidia (ERH): 1 weekly · Boeing 737-800
• Marrakech (RAK) – Fes (FEZ): 5 weekly · Boeing 737-800
• Marrakech (RAK) – Oujda (OUD): 2 weekly · Boeing 737-800
• Marrakech (RAK) – Tangier (TNG): 3 weekly · Boeing 737-800
• Marrakech (RAK) – Tetuan (TTU): 2 weekly · Boeing 737-800
• Tangier (TNG) – Agadir (AGA): 2 weekly · Boeing 737-800
• Tangier (TNG) – Beni Mellal (BEM): 2 weekly · Boeing 737-800
• Tangier (TNG) – Essaouira (ESU): 1 weekly · Boeing 737-800
• Tangier (TNG) – Ouarzazate (OZZ): 1 weekly · Boeing 737-800
• Tangier (TNG) – Oujda (OUD): 4 weekly · Boeing 737-800

In addition to Tangier, Ryanair will start flying to Beni Mellal from Milan Bergamo and Girona on March 29th.

SAS

As we announced in our Europe report, Scandinavian Airlines System will return to Lebanon beginning in June following a year-and-a-half suspension. 

• Copenhagen (CPH) – Beirut (BEY): 3 weekly · June 6th
• Stockholm Arlanda (ARN) – Beirut (BEY): 2 weekly · June 17th

For more information on these flights, you can read our Europe report.

Uganda Airlines

Uganda’s leading airline confirmed it will begin flying to Europe from May 18th, with the new Entebbe – London Gatwick route.

For the first time in nearly a decade, Uganda Airlines will enter the European market, joining Africa, its main market of operations, as well as the Middle East and Asia, where it has a destination in each.

Current Uganda Airlines’ routes

We will soon publish another article with more details on the announcement of this new route.

New aircraft added by airlines from Africa and the Middle East

• Emirates

• Ethiopian Airlines (x2)

• flynas

• Qatar Airways

• TAAG Linhas Aéreas de Angola

Cover photo: Wen W – JetPhotos (Chicago O’Hare Int’l Airport – KORD – USA – Illinois)