Daily flights, 15 minutes for immigration: Fujairah Airport to expand

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Fujairah International Airport (FIA) could soon start daily flights to several countries including India, revealed airport officials. “Although we cannot reveal the exact dates, it could be very soon,” said Mark Govender, business development manager at FIA. “It could be as early as this year. We are just waiting for some documentation to be finalized.”

Speaking to Khaleej Times during the Arabian Travel Mart (ATM) that began in Dubai on Monday, senior officials of FIA said they have been seeing a lot of interest from many carriers.

In July this year, Egypt Air will begin operating flights to Fujairah. “The flights will begin on July 11 and we are very excited about it,” said Govender. “We are in final talks with one Indian airline while other airlines have also shown interest. It is a very exciting time for Fujairah airport.”

In June 2023, Oman-based SalamAir began operating weekly flights to Fujairah and according to Govender, these have been extremely successful. “We have two flights a week to Muscat and those are operating at almost 100% capacity,” he said. “Many passengers are using it to travel onwards from Muscat as well.”

During the khareef or autumn season, SalamAir also operated direct flights to Salalah from FIA. “These were also extremely popular among UAE residents for whom it was a cost-effective way of getting to Salalah for the tourist season,” he said.

The FIA has plans to rapidly expand its operations. “We can cater to over 2 million passengers a year and can service at least 20 flights a day due to our parallel runway,” said Govender. “From a flight perspective, they don’t have any waiting periods to land or any queue so it is very economical in terms of fuel usage. We are also able to give highly desirable slots to many airlines which other airports are not able to provide due to traffic.”

He further revealed that the FIA had several advantages compared to other airports in the country. “A passenger at the Fujairah airport can land, finish immigration, collect his baggage and be out of the airport in less than 15 minutes,” he said. “Also, passengers don’t have to walk long distances looking for their gates because it is quite a small airport and they will be able to see all the gates from a single place.”

According to him, the airport also offers free parking and a customized experience. “We are a very small, niche market airport that specializes in providing bespoke customer experience,” he said. “The airport is just about an hour’s drive away from major cities in Dubai and can be a great alternative for many travellers.”