MEBAA
PUBLICATIONS
12.6.16 • DUBAI
Convention News
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Bizav’s Brightest Alight at Dubai
DAVID McINTOSH
A handful of the 50 aircraft on display at the MEBAA 2016 static park nuzzle up to the old Dubai Airshow control tower as the doors open on this year’s Middle East and North Africa Business Aviation Association show at Dubai’s Al Maktoum International Airport (aka Dubai South) at Dubai World Central.
Gama unveils Sharjah FBO as an alternative to Dubai by Ian Sheppard Gama Aviation today unveils plans for its major new business aviation facility at Sharjah International Airport. The development, which is due to open in mid-2018, will offer an alternative to congested Dubai International Airport (DXB) and closer access to the center of Dubai than Dubai World Central (DWC). The UK-based group is reveal ing architectural drawings for a purpose-built complex that will offer Charter Outlook
space for commercial tenants as well as passengers and crew of its own aircraft management and charter operations. Billed as the first integrated facility of its type in Sharjah, the new facility will comprise a 100-meter-long (328-foot) hangar (with an option for a second), plus 20,000 square meters (215,000 square feet) of apron parking space. Over the past 12 months, Gama, which also provides maintenance services, has seen a 12 percent
increase in the volume of traffic it handles at its existing Sharjah operation. It says this is due to slot restrictions at DXB and also the fact that Sharjah is significantly closer to Dubai’s financial district than DWC. Gama’s aircraft management and charter business has increased by around a third over the past year. This is partly explained by the addition of new aircraft to its fleet, including a Bombardier Learjet 60 and a Piaggio Avanti Evo, which have joined its existing heavy and ultra-long-range aircraft. “We have made excellent progress this year [with] our air business growing the fleet by 33 percent and the ground business benefiting
New Aircraft
Regional Market
Avinode’s Data-Driven Approach
Textron Aviation’s Big Iron
Avinode Marketplace’s “business-toconsumer” technology shows what the company calls “a healthy increase” in web searches for Middle East region air charter services. Page 6
The Cessna Citation Latitude is the company’s latest, but the company soon will be targeting the larger business jet markets with the forthcoming Longitude and Hemisphere models. Page 22
Rising oil prices boost economies, but bizav challenged by Peter Shaw-Smith Leaders of the Middle East business aviation community gathered in Dubai yesterday in search of strategies for reversing the industry’s general malaise in this part of the world. At a conference held on the eve of the 2016 MEBAA show, speakers called for a more business-friendly regulatory environment as well as progress on controlling rising costs. The biennial MEBAA event opens on Tuesday less than a week after Middle Eastern economies were boosted by news of an agreement by OPEC oil producing
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MRO Support
Modifications
Middle East Bizav Overview
Amac’s Heavy Maintenance Expands
Comlux Extends Airbus A321 Range
Can OPEC’s 2029 peak petroleum demand forecast help drive enough regional economic diversification to rescue the region’s mostly flat business aviation market? Page 30
Basel, Switzerland-based Amac Aerospace is promoting its MRO services to new and existing customers, including BBJ, ACJ, Gulfstream and widebody jet operators worldwide. Page 41
The company’s STC’d forward fuselagemounted auxiliary tank will be ready in 3Q 2017 and can add 500 nm to the aircraft’s range in VIP configurations and 300 nm for airline operators. Page 44.