E-purchase for Japanese and Danish The national carrier EgyptAir revealed plans to expand its electronic marketing tools to new markets in Europe and the Far East. To activate its services into north Europe, the airline is extending electronic purchases in the Danish market, allowing agents to book and buy their tickets online. The carrier launched its service to Copenhagen 18 months ago. Effective from 15 April, EgyptAir is due to resume operation to Japan after a suspension that extended for more than a year. The service was stopped first due to floods which swept Japanese cities last year, soon and due to the unrest which followed the 25 January revolution in Egypt, when the Japanese government issued a travel warning to its citizen who seek to visit Egypt. The national carrier suspended the route till the official warning was removed. According to the new e-purchase applications, passengers in Denmark and Japan will be able to make reservation, buy and pay their tickets on line using their local currency. According to Ayma Nasr, airline chairman, the more investments the company gives to electronic services, the better achievement the sales efforts hit. "We have achieved 20 per cent increase in sales comparing to the previous fiscal year due to the expansion of electronic procedures adopted for marketing," commented Nasr. The airline has expanded its electronic social communication through Facebook and Twitter, launching more services to maintain the loyalty of its clients." According to Nasr, the airline is studying at present launching more applications for mobile users to bring its services closer and closer to their fingertips. QA redeems Qmiles Qatar Airways' privilege club members can now use their Qmiles as a convenient means of payment for their duty free shopping at Qatar Duty Free within Doha International Airport. Whether departing, transiting or arriving in Doha, members can use the new service allowing them to choose to pay with cash or Qmiles �ê" or a combination of both �ê" on any purchase with Qatar Duty Free. Passengers can make their purchases at Qatar Duty Free locations within the Departures, Arrivals and Premium Terminals at Doha International Airport. Members can also purchase raffle tickets for the popular luxury car draws or the One Million Dollar draw with their Qmiles. In addition, as an exclusive benefit, Privilege Club Gold members will enjoy a special discount on the Qmiles required for redemption on duty free purchases. Passengers can earn Qmiles by flying Qatar Airways or many of its airline partners. Members can also earn Qmiles whenever they use services of any of the airline's hotel, car rental, financial and travel partners. More information on Privilege Club can be found at www.qmiles.comwww.qmiles.com Boeing reveals Q1 Boeing manufacturers announced deliveries across its commercial and defense operations for the first quarter of 2012. In the commercial space, the airliner delivered 137 airplanes during the first quarter of 2012. The 737 model continues to be a major pillar of Boeing's strength in the commercial airplane sector with deliveries of 99 airplanes, followed by its 777 model with 20 deliveries in the first quarter. Both these models continue to do well due to their fuel efficiency and lower operating costs compared with competing models. The company during the quarter also delivered seven 767s, six 747s, and five 787. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) said the profitability of the commercial airline operator will take a dip in 2012 compared to the last two years. The downturn is mainly due to rising oil prices. IATA expects airlines to turn a global profit of $3.0 billion in 2012 for a 0.5% margin. This represents a $500 million downgrade from its December 2011 forecast, primarily on the grounds of higher expected average price of oil, at $115 per barrel, up from the previously expected $99.KLM puts B777 to Cairo KLM Egypt said on Tuesday it had expanded operation to Cairo bringing its state-of-the-art Boeing 777-200 aircraft, to operate pn Cairo-Amestrdam route. This will allow the airline to offer a capacity of 318 passengers: 35 in World Business Class and 283 in Economy Class. On board, all seats are equipped with personal screens and interactive entertainment. World Business Class Sleeper Seats offer great comfort with a 170-degree recline, 190 cm length and privacy canopy. With three weekly KLM flights from Cairo, and Air France flights, together Air France & KLM offer convenient connections with a wide choice of onward destinations. Traffic increase to Muscat Muscat International Airport reported a 14 per cent increase in passenger traffic to 2.4 million in 2011, Arabian Business reported. According to the airport's data, arrivals from Italy saw the biggest increase with 77 per cent, followed by Russia with 50 per cent growth, Belgium with 33 per cent, while arrivals from France remained flat. Visitors from the Gulf rose 27 per cent to 618,877 passenger arrivals, data showed. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) figures also reported a 13 per cent rise in passenger arrivals to the Omani city of Salalah.
