JAZEERA AIRWAYS SHOWS ITS HUMANITARIAN SIDE

UNCLAS KUWAIT 003166

SIPDIS

SIPDIS
SENSITIVE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EAIR PHUM FAA KU
SUBJECT: JAZEERA AIRWAYS SHOWS ITS HUMANITARIAN SIDE

REF: 05 KUWAIT 4510

This cable is sensitive but unclassified; please protect
accordingly. Not for Internet distribution.


1. (U) Jazeera Airways (JA),the first private airline
company in the Gulf and Kuwait's only low-cost carrier (Ref
A),has taken to offering free humanitarian flights as a way
to boost its already positive public image. Prior to
Kuwait's historic parliamentary elections on June 29, the
first in which women were eligible to participate as voters
and candidates, JA offered free seats on its flights to
Kuwait for woman eligible to vote or who wanted to observe
the elections. JA Communications Manager Fawaz Al-Sirri said
the decision to offer the free flights was made in support of
women's rights and as a call for Kuwaiti women to return and
participate in the election. He reported that 185 women of
various nationalities took advantage of the free flights.


2. (U) More recently, JA repatriated thousands of Kuwaiti
residents (both Kuwaiti and expatriate) who had fled the
conflict in Lebanon. After flights to and from Beirut were
suspended, JA diverted those flights to Damascus and
evacuated 7,650 persons on 46 flights to Kuwait through the
first two weeks of the conflict. JA conducted these
evacuation flights free-of-charge to passengers, although the
Ministry of Communications later announced that the GOK will
reimburse JA for the costs, which reportedly totalled USD 6.3
million (1.8 million Kuwaiti Dinars). Additionally, JA
announced that any person holding tickets to Beirut could
receive either a full refund or an equivalent flight credit
to another JA destination plus 10% off their next booking.


3. (SBU) Comment: JA has received significant positive
press coverage for these efforts, adding to its already
positive public image. Al-Sirri said free flights for women
voters and for evacuees are part of JA's marketing and
business strategy to position itself as a good corporate
citizen, and to position itself as a counterpoint to national
carrier Kuwait Airways, which is generally seen as bloated,
inefficient, and having poor service. Clearly, GOK
reimbursement made the evacuation flights more financially
palatable for JA, but Al-Sirri insisted that JA had decided
to offer the flights before any compensation plan had been
worked out. Although Al-Sirri declined to estimate JA's
profits or market share for its first year of operation, he
said that JA management is satisfied with JA's perfomance.
Many mission employees have flown JA to regional destinations
and almost universally give the airline rave reviews. End
Comment.

********************************************
For more Embassy Kuwait reporting, see:
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/kuwait/?cable s

Or Visit Embassy Kuwait's Classified Website:
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/kuwait/
********************************************
TUELLER