Middle East Set to Be One of the Fastest-Growing Airline Markets
25.08.2023 - 14:02
/ skift.com
/ Peden Doma Bhutia
Despite a sluggish international travel market, the pace of recovery in the Middle East aviation market accelerated throughout 2022 and is expected to take off over the next 10 years with the region’s share of the global fleet set to expand. In its “Global Fleet and MRO Market Forecast 2023-2033,” global management consulting firm Oliver Wyman noted that the Middle East remains among the fastest-growing aviation markets in the world, with the regional fleet set to expand 5.1 percent annually over the next decade. The report further noted that the Middle East’s share of global fleet will grow over the decade from 4.9 percent in 2023 to 6 percent in 2033. Meanwhile, the global fleet is projected to expand one-third by 2033, to well over 36,000 aircraft, with Oliver Wyman also anticipating a record number of aircraft deliveries over the next 10 years (despite current supply chain constraints). The Middle East fleet’s growth over the next decade will primarily be driven by the addition of narrow bodies. Historically, the Middle Eastern fleet has been primarily made up of widebodies. But moving forward, the report observed that narrow bodies will increase to 48 percent of the fleet from 39 percent, while wide bodies will decline to 48 percent from 56 percent.
Highlighting key travel trends to Saudi Arabia for the month coinciding with Ramadan, global travel marketplace Skyscanner noted that travellers from across the Gulf, UK, Egypt and Germany are amongst the most popular making their way to the kingdom during this time. With over 70 percent of travelers looking for trips between one and two-week long, Jeddah is the airport of choice, accounting for 75 percent of bookings. “As restrictions ease and capacity increases, we are seeing travel demand return to pre-pandemic levels, if not higher,” said Ayoub El Mamoun, Skyscanner travel expert. “Travel remains a key priority, with many travellers across the Gulf, such as the United Arab Emirates and Saudi, planning the same or more trips in 2023 than they did the year previously.”
Oman welcomed 2.9 million tourists in 2022, a 348 percent increase compared to 2021. The number of tourism projects and hotel establishments also increased relatively. This information was announced by Ibrahim Said Al Kharousi, undersecretary of the ministry of heritage and tourism in Oman. Al Kharosi was speaking at the Global Travel Week Middle East hosted by Oman. Around 200 luxury tourism specialists had participated at the event that sought to introduce tourism hotspots, exchange tourism experiences and reaffirm commitment to support and develop travel and tourism in the region. With the prime aim of showcasing Oman’s tourism potential, Global Travel Week sought ways to
The website maxtravelz.com is an aggregator of news from open sources. The source is indicated at the beginning and at the end of the announcement. You can
send a complaint on the news if you find it unreliable.