GCC aviation market structure
Over the last decade, the GCC aviation industry has been outperforming other regional markets, mainly due to its infrastructure and demographic makeup. The GCC countries own 13 airlines, with the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia dominating the market, with the later welcoming more than 87 million passengers in 2022. There are only two publicly listed airlines, Air Arabia and Jazeera Airways, which underpins the impression that the GCC aviation industry is mainly government-controlled. Emirates, Qatar Airways, and Etihad Airways are all wholly owned by the states. The GCC aviation market is expanding yearly, supported by the success of low-cost carriers such as Jazeera Airways, SalamAir, Flynas, Air Arabia, and flydubai.Leading GCC airlines
Emirates is the largest full-service carrier in the region in terms of fleet, destinations served, and revenue . Before the COVID-19 outbreak, Emirates Airlines carried over 50 million passengers and over two million tons of freight worldwide.Etihad’s fleet expansion has put the airline in the top three most significant full-service carriers in the GCC region. Its main base is Abu Dhabi International Airport, in the capital of the United Arab Emirates. Etihad supports a range of sporting and cultural events in UAE and worldwide, such as Etihad Stadium, Ferrari Formula 1 Team, Sport Australia Hall of Fame, and Manchester City Football Club.
Air Arabia is one of the region’s four major low-cost carriers, with its main base in Sharjah International Airport, UAE. With its increasing popularity, the airline doubled its fleet size between 2011 and 2021. The airline started operating in 2003 as the first low-fare airline in the Middle East.
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