Will Cheaper Flights to Dubai Catch On?

Addis Fortune (Addis Ababa)

12 July 2011

Ethiopian women line up to board a flydubai plane to Kuwait at Dubai International Airport, many are travelling to Kuwait in search of work.

Fisum Bekele, 22, and her cousin, Aster Gesheme, 21, have decided to migrate to Kuwait to become domestic helpers, after paying a total of 6,000 Br to My Agency. The cousins, who originally come from Gonder, waited to board the flydubai airliner at the Bole International Airport on Tuesday, June 21, 2011.

The plane was full of young Ethiopian women who were very excited to be departing to another land. Some of them met their old friends onboard, adding to the excitement, however, all were worried about the new environment they would soon encounter.

They were not happy with the services of the Airbus. “I know that a ticket includes every service, including meals, and I was surprised when the crews asked us to pay money in order to receive a meal,” Fisum complained.

Ethiopian Airlines and Emirates, also owned by the government of Dubai, already offer direct flights from Addis Abeba to Dubai.

Flydubai, which was established in June 2009, is the first low-cost airline owned by the government of Dubai and the first introduced in Ethiopia. The airline, which started its operation with a daily flight to Beirut, Lebanon, has established routes to 33 countries, including Armenia, Pakistan, Iraq and Russia.

Low-cost airlines are also known as “no frills” or “discount carriers,” and they offer the lowest fares. They make up for the losses in ticket revenue, by cutting down on traditional airline services, such as the in-flight meal. This model was first introduced by Southwest Airlines in the United States.

Flydubai, a low cost airline which introduced this new scheme in the region, has concluded a temporary agreement contract, until October 2011, with the Ethiopian Civil Aviation Authority (ECAA), which is responsible for authorising an international air service to operate in Ethiopia.

“In most cases, flight permits (other than chartered flights) are awarded after two countries develop an agreement,” says Endashaw Yigezu, director of the Air Transport and Planning Directorate.

The ECAA, however, gave flydubai temporary permission to operate in the country until the airline applies to the ECAA for permanent permission.

Permits are awarded after considering the impact of the specific airline on the profits of Ethiopian Airlines, as well as the added value of introducing a new airliner to the country, according to Endashaw.

A flydubai airliner: Offering cheaper flights by cutting down services

Ethiopian Airlines offers 21 flights to Dubai on a weekly basis, while Emirates has five flights, and flydubai offers three flights a week.

“We want to give the passengers an opportunity to purchase flights depending on the service they require, and to make travel more affordable and accessible,” Houda Al Kaissi, public relations specialist for flydubai told Fortune. There is no reason why passengers should pay for the services that they did not want to use.

The airline introduces a simple fare scheme whereby a passenger can opt to pay for certain services, such as an in-flight movie. There are different types of low-cost carriers, some of them charge for airport check-in, baggage check-in, seat allocation and credit card processing.

Flydubai charges 4,089 Br for a ticket from Addis Abeba to Dubai and 228 Br for a 20kg checked baggage and 114 Br for a combo meal, while the price of movies is dependent upon the type of movie that the traveller selected. A passenger on an Addis to Dubai flight will be charged a total of 4,431 Br for all the services (with the exception of movies).

“The agency told us that the new airline will reduce our costs but they did not tell us that there will not be any other services provided,” Fisum told Fortune.

Ethiopian and Emirates charge 9,641 Br and 9,279 Br, respectively for direct flight tickets from Addis Abeba to Dubai, and this includes all the services on board.

The major targets of flydubai in Addis is to attract the business persons in Merkato who want to save their money for their business, according to a manager of flydubai, who has worked with Emirates for the past 10 years.

Yet some Ethiopian traders are not happy with the service delivered by the airlines.

Degu Teshome, 30, who is a furniture importer, travels to Dubai every two months using Emirates.

“I heard about the new airline but I want to travel with an airline that will provide me with all the services and the maximum luggage weight capacity that is currently permitted by Emirates,” he told Fortune.

Since the concept of low-cost airlines is new for people in the region, it may take time for them to understand all the advantages and disadvantages of the new scheme, according to a flydubai manager.

Degu is also a member of Skywards, an award-winning frequent program me of Emirates that offers rewards and benefits that go beyond the travel experience. “Though I did not travel with flydubai, I suspect that it is low quality,” Degu presumed.

Houda from flydubai disagreed, arguing that this misperception is caused by the belief that cheap products tend to be associated with poor quality, and this needs to be addressed. The airline uses new Boeing aircraft with a new sky interior and a revolutionary entertainment system, and also has highly qualified pilots, cabin crews and in terms of flight delays, the airline recorded 85pc on time performance, Houda added.

Flydubai has 17 aircraft with 189 economy class seats, which are currently in operation with 1,054 total staff members, of which 236 are pilots and 463 are cabin crew members who are recruited from 85 different nationalities. It has also ordered 50 new aircraft from Boeing.

The airline flies to 31 different destinations, of which the majority are Middle East destinations and only five are African destinations including, Ethiopia, Egypt, Sudan, and Djibouti.

While the airline is looking to attract traders in Merkato, traders suspect that, the airlines is providing low-cost service with poor quality. “We need to advertize and create awareness in the community, as we are looking for them to be customers,” flydubai manager told Fortune.

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