This Thursday, Emirati carrier flydubai announced its plans to resume operations between Dubai and Kabul, Afghanistan, with a double daily service adding another gateway to its growing list exceeding 115 destinations. This marks the first international carrier to resume services to Afghanistan since the withdrawal of US forces.
The carrier will operate the hop between Dubai International and Kabul International and launch from November 15th, with services twice daily on one of the carrier’s 78 Boeing 737s.
Kam Air and Ariana Afghan Airlines are currently the sole operators at the Afghani airport, with operations domestically and to various international destinations such as Delhi, Doha, Dubai, Moscow, and Kuwait.
flydubai will face competition on the route, with both Kam Air and Ariana Afghan already serving multiple UAE ports. Ariana links Kabul with Al Ain (AAN) and Dubai International (DXB), while Kam Air serves Abu Dhabi (AUH), Dubai International, and Sharjah (SHJ).
In 2022, GAAC, a United Arab Emirates organization, forged an agreement with Afghanistan to manage all air traffic. This was expected to encourage international airlines to resume to the war-ravaged country. GAAC also provides contracts for the country’s ground handling services and security screening at the country’s three major airports (Kabul, Kandahar, and Herat).
As already noted, flydubai’s resumption to Kabul marks the first international airline to resume operations in Kabul, and its twice-daily inbound flights from the Dubai mega-hub are expected to see onward demand through the carrier’s expanding network and feeding into its big brother, Emirates.
From Dubai Terminal Two, both services will kick off in the morning, with the first eye-watering departure on FZ301 scheduled to push back from DXB at 04:25. The arrival of this service is expected to be at 08:15 local time at KBL. This aircraft will remain on the apron for one hour and 15 minutes before departing as FZ302 from Kabul at 09:30 and returning to Dubai at 12:50.
Those not keen on the earlier departure noted above can opt for the carrier’s second service, which will leave Dubai at FZ305, with doors expected to close at 09:50 and touch down in the Afghani capital of Kabul at 13:40. FZ306 is the number allocated for the return flight. It will leave from Kabul at 14:55, destined for an arrival in Dubai at 18:15.
Afghan Herald/Agencies
