Madinah ranked among top investment destinations

Madinah Gov. Prince Faisal bin Salman said Madinah is an investment-friendly province, the investment competitiveness of which has been stressed by international indices. 
The prince made the comment while receiving Chairman of the Madinah Chamber of Commerce and Industry Muhammed Al-Khatrawi and Chairman of the chamber’s Youth Business Committee Wael Al-Oufi at his office on Tuesday.
The two chamber officials briefed the prince on the efforts of the committee to support young businessmen and women and their small enterprises besides the initiative to convene a forum of young businessmen and women in Madinah. 
The prince noted that Madinah has been ranked among the top investment competitive cities in the world. He spoke about a number of projects to be launched with the aim of boosting the investment environment and creating more employment opportunities in the province.
He called on young men and women in business to translate their new ideas into viable projects.
The chamber officials lauded the prince for his support and encouragement for the activities of the young business people and thanked for his acceptance of the honorary chair of the Youth Business Council, the Saudi Press Agency reported.

Disasters spark Malaysia Airlines resignations

Nearly 200 cabin crew have resigned from Malaysia Airlines following the two deadly tragedies which have hit the carrier this year, it said Tuesday, and some reportedly cited fears for their safety.

The flag carrier, which prior to this year had a good safety record, has been in the spotlight in the past six months following the disappearance of flight MH370 on March 8 and the shooting down of MH17 on July 17 over rebel-held eastern Ukraine.

The airline said 186 crew had left in the first seven months of this year, with many blaming family pressure prompted by the tragedies.

"Following the MH17 incident, there was a spike in crew resignations but the number has now decreased to acceptable and routinely expected levels," it said in a statement

"Many cited 'family pressure' as the reason for their resignation due to the MH17 and MH370 tragedies."

Abdul Malek Ariff, secretary-general of the employees union, said some "are now are afraid to fly".

Abdul Malek, quoted by the Edge Financial daily Monday, also said crew shortages were forcing staff to work up to 12 hours a day.

The union represents about 8,000 of Malaysia Airlines' 19,500-strong workforce.

The carrier said it was providing emotional and psychological support to its staff.

The two aviation tragedies killed 537 people including 27 crew members.

Flight MH370 disappeared mysteriously in March en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. No trace has been found despite an intensive search in the southern Indian Ocean.

The airline was widely criticised for its handling of the crisis.

On July 17 MH17 was shot down over war-torn eastern Ukraine, with another 298 people killed.

The ailing airline is in the midst of being taken private by sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional as part of an expected major overhaul.

Khazanah is expected this week to announce a series of restructuring measures including job cuts and axing of unprofitable international routes.

The carrier has struggled amid intense competition, losing $1.3 billion over the past three years even before the two disasters.

For this year's first quarter the airline posted a net loss of 443 million ringgit ($137 million) citing MH370's impact on bookings.

It was the fifth straight quarterly loss.

Airport officer manhandles traveler

A Passport Department officer is facing punitive action after video footage showed him manhandling a Saudi who had tried to jump the queue after arriving on a flight from Germany.
The man, who arrived at Jeddah airport on a flight from Frankfurt, demanded that his passport be stamped quickly, even though there were other travelers from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in the queue before him.
The man then jumped the queue, prompting the officer to leave his desk and force him back to his place. KAIA authorities intervened and promised strict action against the officer.

Egypt, UAE carried out Tripoli air strikes — US officials



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American sees single operating certificate in Q2 2015

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Air Lease Corporation Announces the Placement of Two New Boeing 777-300ERs with KLM

Details

 

Published on Thursday, 14 August 2014 10:14

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Air Lease Corporation announced long term lease agreements with KLM (The Netherlands) for two additional new Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, scheduled for delivery in the second half of 2016 and early 2017. These aircraft placements are in addition to the two new 777-300ER aircraft scheduled for lease from ALC to KLM in early 2015 and early 2016, all from ALC’s order book.

“KLM is one of our key and strategic European airline customers. This placement of four new Boeing 777-300ERs continues our long and excellent relationship with KLM as they operate a leading global airline fleet,” said Steven F. Udvar-Hazy, Chairman and CEO of Air Lease Corporation.

“ALC is proud to announce this successful transaction with KLM, which is now committed to lease a total of four new Boeing 777-300ERs on long term basis from ALC’s own order pipeline,” said Grant Levy, Executive Vice President of Air Lease Corporation. “The Boeing 777-300ER aircraft continues to be a fundamental part of KLM’s long haul fleet operations.”

ALC also already leases Airbus A330-200, A330-300, Boeing 777-200ER and 737-800 aircraft to KLM.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including expected delivery dates. Such statements are based on current expectations and projections about our future results, prospects and opportunities and are not guarantees of future performance. Such statements will not be updated unless required by law. Actual results and performance may differ materially from those expressed or forecasted in forward-looking statements due to a number of factors, including those discussed in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Source and image: Air Lease / KLM