Air Arabia obtains Dh1.3bn loan

Air Arabia, the first and largest low cost carrier (LCC) in the Mena region, signed a $350 million (Dh1.3 billion) finance deal from a syndicate of two GCC banks to support the acquisition of 10 new Airbus A320 aircraft.

Air Arabia signed the deal with senior representatives of Qatar National Bank (QNB Group) and Commercial Bank International (CBI).

The financing facility is to support the purchase of 10 new aircraft, which is part of a larger order for 44 A320s placed with Airbus in 2007.

The low-cost carrier earlier this month announced net profit of Dh59 million for the three months ending March 31, 2013 compared to Dh49 million in the corresponding quarter in 2012, registering an increase of 20 per cent.

The airline attributes the impressive growth to its appealing product offering and strong operational performance.

In the first quarter of this year, Air Arabia posted a turnover of Dh722 million, an increase of 22 per cent compared to Dh594 million in the same period of 2012.

Between January 1, 2013 and March 31, 2013, Air Arabia launched non-stop services from its primary hub in Sharjah to four new destinations. In addition, the low-cost pioneer increased frequency of flights from Sharjah to Beirut in Lebanon, Salalah in Oman, and Dhaka in Bangladesh.