Low cost carrier Air Arabia to launch flights to Turkey’s Trabzon

Sharjah based low-cost carrier Air Arabia will launch flights to the Turkish city of Trabzon from June 23, it announced on Sunday.

The new seasonal non-stop service is the airline’s second route in Turkey, in addition to Istanbul.

The flight will operate three times weekly on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, departing Sharjah International Airport at 9.30pm, and arriving at Trabzon International Airport at 12.05am local time the next day.

The return service will depart Trabzon at 12.45am, landing in Sharjah at 5pm local time.

“Trabzon provides travellers with a unique opportunity to experience Turkey’s coastal region and witness the history behind one of the oldest trading ports in the country,” said Adel Al Ali, group CEO of Air Arabia.

“We are confident that the new destination will provide our visitors with a unique holiday getaway, and further cement trade and bilateral ties between the two nations.”

Air Arabia currently operates flights to 125 international destinations from five hubs located in the Middle East and North Africa.

Although expanding, the airline recently revealed that its 2016 net profit attributable to its owners has dropped to Dhs490.4m, down from Dhs511.3m a year ago.

“The fourth quarter of 2016 was impacted by deteriorating yield margins that the industry in general and the Middle East region in particular is witnessing,” chairman Sheikh Abdullah Bin Mohammad Al Thani said at the time.

“The solid operating metrics and high seat load factor that Air Arabia achieved in the fourth quarter were impacted by a continuous drop in yield margins as a result of the overcapacity deployed in the market and the slow growth environment in major economic hubs.”

Read more: Air Arabia swings to surprise Q4 net loss