Continued surge in the visitors to Dubai and record number passing through its airport proves that non-stop development of the infrastructure needed to cope with these visitors was the right thing to do, said the chief of flydubai, Dubai's budget carrier.

Speaking at the Arabian Travel Market, Ghaith Al Ghaith, said, “Many people doubted Dubai for continuing to spend money on the development of hotels and associated tourism infrastructure at a time when people were cutting back on their travel spend.”

Hailing the vision and courage of the Dubai government and developers who continued to invest during the economic crisis, Al Ghaith remarked, 'The establishment of Dubai’s first low cost airline, at the height of the crisis was questioned by some - but Dubai was right.'

According to him, the continued development of the infrastructure needed to cope with these visitors was the right thing to do. 'Without that development Dubai would not be in the position it is to capitalise on the increased visitor numbers,' he added.
 
“These additional tourists and business travellers are coming for a variety of reasons, not least the recent turmoil in the region. People are putting Dubai and the UAE at the top of their leisure and business travel wish lists because they are very safe, comfortable and enjoyable destinations with something to offer to all types of travellers.'

'They also now have affordable travel options thanks to the lower fares introduced by flydubai and the UAE’s burgeoning budget hotel market," the official said.

“Travel is something that people both need to and enjoy doing. Regional turmoil and economic crises are temporary situations which, over time, are resolved – and when they are, people start to travel again. Dubai has been very smart in continuing to invest to ensure the country is ready to capitalise on inevitable return to travel,” Al Ghaith noted.

Flydubai’s own figures show that despite starting operations during the worst economic crisis for more than a generation, it was the right thing to do, he pointed out.

Fleet growth of almost 120 per cent (end 2010 v end 2009) combined with network growth of 164 per cent (end 2010 v end 2009) show that flydubai is now a force to be reckoned with in the regional air travel market.

The airline now operates more than 500 flights per week to 36 destinations, using 16 brand new Boeing 737-800NG aircraft – more than half of which are equipped with flydubai’s revolutionary new in-flight entertainment system.

But despite such rapid increases in fleet, flights and network, the airline has stayed true to its commitment to ensure a quality, low cost service for passengers, said Al Ghaith.

'During 2010, flydubai maintained an impressive On Time Performance record of 83 per cent for Departures and 80 per cent for Arrivals. This is one measure of how successful an airline is and these figures ensure flydubai has one of the best records in the industry,' the airline chief said.

Al Ghaith said flydubai's growth wth throughout 2010 has been phenomenal despite a number of challenges.

'We’ve built a solid foundation for our future development and I am looking forward with confidence to the remainder of 2011 and the years to come,” he added.-TradeArabia News Service