Holy flights under friendly fire
The dispute over suspending scheduled flights between Cairo and Madina
has come too close to explode as the Saudis put the responsibility of
the crisis on Egyptian aviation authorities, Amirah Ibrahim
reports
Almost two weeks have passed, yet no near solution to the suspended omra
flights between Madina and Cairo can be seen. Regrettably, Egyptian
pilgrims pay the price.
Ten days ago, the Saudi authorities suspended scheduled flights
operated by the national carrier, EgyptAir, between Cairo and the holy
city of Madina. The Egyptians in their turn reacted by suspending the
Saudi Airlines flights between the same two points. The result was that
hundreds of Egyptian pilgrims who purchased flight tickets to Madina had
to be transferred daily by buses and suffer a two-way trip -- each way
takes about five hours -- to and from Jeddah.
"We are committed to transfer our passengers for free between Jeddah
and Madina as they trusted EgyptAir in arranging their holy trip
through Madina route," explained Samir Imbabi, EgyptAir Saudi Arabia
area manager. "We used to manage the holy trips through Jeddah till 2006
when Madina route was opened to the Egyptian carriers. Now we return to
Jeddah till the dispute is solved," Imbabi added.
The routes between the Saudi Kingdom and Egypt are the busiest in
the Arab world with at least three million passengers transferred
between the two countries last year, including hajj and omra
pilgrim flights. According to Imbabi, EgyptAir is the second biggest
operator to the Saudi destinations after the Saudi Airlines. "We operate
98 flights to Jeddah, 25 to Riyadh and 17 to Dammam in addition to the
suspended daily flight to Madina," he explained.
The trigger for the action by the Saudi General Authority for Civil
Aviation (GACA) was the refusal by its Egyptian counterpart to permit
two low cost Saudi airlines, Nas Air and Sama, to be awarded landing
slots at Cairo International Airport.
"Both of us are paying the price for something we are not guilty
of," stated Captain Alaa Ashour, chairman of the national carrier
EgyptAir. "We are not involved in the dispute between Cairo
International and the Saudi authorities. We never intervened to request a
ban against any airline to operate to any Egyptian airport. We have
close cooperation and a strong relationship with the Saudi national
carrier Saudi Airlines with which we have a code-share agreement to sell
tickets on each other's planes. Our IT technical team is currently
working with their Saudi counterparts to assist the sister airline to
convert its IT system to AMADUS. Thus we both lose," Ashour regreted.
According to him, EgyptAir daily losses due to the suspension of Madina
route are estimated at LE300,000.
The dispute deepened when the Saudi authorities allowed two new
airlines, Lebanese MEA and Royal Jordanian airline, to operate to Madina
airport whereas they suspended the Egyptian flights on the pretext that
the airport's capacity is limited.
On Monday the Saudi GACA made a detailed official statement that set
the dispute on fire. The statement revealed the real reasons behind
suspending the operation to Madina, as described by GACA spokesman
Khaled El-Khaibari.
"We expected the Egyptian authorities to honour both their
international obligations as a member of the International Air Transport
Association and the terms of the bilateral deal it signed with Saudi
Arabia in 2006," stated Al-Khaibari. "The kingdom opened all its
airports with no exceptions to all Egyptian carriers regardless of
classification, be it budget airliners or low cost carriers, or regular
operators."
According to GACA, the Saudi authorities also allowed a private
Egyptian airline to operate to Yanbu, Abha and Jeddah.
"When the Egyptians insisted on not fulfilling their obligations we
decided to apply the agreement by text which limits operation to Madina
according to the airport's capacity. Thus the Egyptian flights were
suspended. Then the Egyptians moved to break the agreement when they
suspended the Saudi flights between Cairo and Madina. Moreover, the two
Saudi budget airlines, NAS and SAMA, were forced to reduce their
scheduled flights to Alexandria and Assiut," El-Khaibari added.
The statement criticised the Egyptian aviation authorities as being
concerned at the impact that budget airlines are having on the national
carrier EgyptAir. It also indicated that both NAS and SAMA had
reportedly arranged to peg their fares to those currently charged by
Saudi Airlines and EgyptAir, but to no avail.
"This is against a fair competitive environment and against the
millions of Egyptian pilgrims and workers who transfer between Egyptian
and Saudi destinations. They risk their lives on cheaper marine and road
trips. Budget airlines also will help increasing Saudi tourism to
Egypt, encouraging Saudi families with large families to travel more to
Egypt," El-Khaibari justified the Saudi position.
Speaking to Al-Ahram Weekly, Chairman of the Egyptian Civil
Aviation Authority Sameh El-Hefni said that the Egyptian official
position was against heightening the dispute. But he explained that the
crisis will remain on hold until the Saudis make a positive move
forward. "The Saudi explanation is misleading. The Saudi flights were
suspended to react to the suspension of Egyptian flights to Madina. We
suspended a Saudi flight for each suspended Egyptian flight. Thus we are
not the ones who have not honoured their obligations," explained
El-Hefni.
The open skies agreements are applied according to the regulating
rules set by each airport. "Aviation authorities give the approval to
airliners to operate among countries. But it is each airport's policy
that accepts or denies the operation by any airline. It is Cairo
International's set regulations not to license low cost carriers to
operate through it. It is the same case when airlines request operation
to London for example. The authorities negotiate operation rights but
Heathrow Airport has the right to accept or refuse according to its
capacity and its set regulations," El-Hefni explained.
Against Saudi claims that the Egyptian authorities adopt protective
policies in favour of the national carrier which bases its operation
from the capital's airport, El-Hefni revealed that a Saudi private
airline, not a low cost airline, was granted permission to fly to Cairo
International three years ago, but later it stopped flights as they
proved not profitable.
"If the Saudi airlines convert into regular operators that operate
flights with different seating -- economy, business and first class --
and allowed their tickets to be exchanged for other airlines' tickets,
then the airport will permit them in," he concluded
موضوع: Holy flights under friendly fire 
الثلاثاء 20 أبريل 2010 - 21:47
