Air Arabia reports 6% rise in 2011 passenger numbers

Air Arabia on Tuesday said it carried some 4.7 million passengers in 2011, marking a six per cent growth compared to the previous year, on the back of its aggressive network expansion strategy. Last year saw the Sharjah-based budget carrier adding six new routes to its network including services to Moscow and Yekaterinburg in Russia; Kharkiv and Donetsk in Ukraine' and Gassim and Yanbu in Saudi Arabia. In addition, the airline also launched non-stop services from its Alexandria hub to Milan in Italy, Riyadh and Dammam in Saudi Arabia. According to Adel Ali, the airline's Board Member and Group CEO, in 2011 Air Arabia served its 70th destination across the globe from its three operating hubs. "Our long-term expansion strategy, underpinned by our business model will continue to drive Air Arabia's growth in the years to come," he said in a statement. The carrier also took delivery of six new A320 aircraft last year as a part of an order for 44 aircraft it placed with Airbus in 2007, which, once completed in 2016, will "more than double" the carrier's fleet.