Cyprus Airways will fly an Airbus A320 on its new Dubai-Beirut sector to cope with heavy passenger demand, a senior executive has announced. The Mediterranean carrier starts flying to Beirut from Dubai twice a week from July 3. Four more flights will be added to the sector from September 5.
Some analysts thought Cyprus Airways would opt for Airbus A319 planes on the sector, but passenger demand for flights to Lebanon necessitated the immediate introduction of larger aircraft.
The A320 configuration flown by Cyprus Airways is 25 seats in business class and 131 in economy. The A319 configuration is 12 seats in business class and 114 in economy.
The extra Beirut flights represent the most substantial route expansion in the Middle East by Cyprus Airways since it commenced operations in the Gulf 26 years ago. Introduction of the new sector has been prompted by major increases in passenger numbers recorded on other Cyprus Airways routes to Beirut.
Cyprus Airways carried 1,654,719 passengers on all routes in 2002, 9.9 percent more than the previous year and the second-largest increase the carrier has recorded in a decade. On the Middle East routes, 216,435 passengers flew with Cyprus Airways in 2002, which is 8.4 percent, or 16,740 passengers, more than in 2001. — (menareport.com)
© 2003 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
