Qatar Airways (QR, Doha International (DOH)) says it is planning to deploy "ten narrow-body aircraft" onto its planned Saudi Arabian domestic operation set to commence operations out of hubs in Riyadh King Khalid (RUH) and Jeddah King Abdul Aziz (JED) later this year. In addition, the airline will operate under a different name, Qatar Airways CEO, Akbar Al-Baker, has confirmed. The winner of the other licence, Gulf Air (GF, Bahrain Muharraq International (BAH)), has yet to make public its plans, understandable given the state of its ongoing restructuring program. To cope with the anticipated upsurge in passenger numbers, the Saudi General Authority for Civil Aviation (GACA) is spending billions on upgrading the kingdom's airports though local players think otherwise, among them the CEO of nasair (Saudi Arabia) (XY, Riyadh King Khalid (RUH)), Francois Bouteiller, who claims the entrance of Qatar Airways and Gulf Air will be “chaotic” due to "insufficient infrastructure" in the kingdom.

Gulf Air (GF, Bahrain Muharraq International (BAH)) faces a tough financial future after Mumtalakat, Bahrain's investment arm for the Kingdom's non-oil and gas strategic assets, recently announced that the struggling carrier would not feature on its fund-disbursement "to-do" list. While the Bahraini sovereign wealth fund has agreed to fund various other state-run enterprises, Mumtalakat chief executive officer, Mahmood al-Kooheji, said Gulf Air would be the exception, as Manama had already doled out USD265million (100million Bahrain dinars) to it from its 2013 state budget, with a further USD200million (75million Bahrain dinars) due in 2014. As a result of heavy losses incurred in 2012, Gulf Air, in January, embarked on a rigorous restructuring programme aimed at returning it to financial sustainability, the first fruits of which have already begun to appear following recent press reports that it had reduced its overall Q1 losses by roughly 50% compared to the same period last year with revenues up 11% more than forecast. While the Kingdom itself has been subject to its own political upheavals in recent months, Gulf Air has struggled to remain relevant in a region dominated by neighbours Emirates (EK, Dubai International (DXB)), Etihad Airways (EY, Abu Dhabi International (AUH)) and Qatar Airways (QR, Doha International (DOH)).

nasair (Saudi Arabia) (XY, Riyadh King Khalid (RUH)) could soon face stiff competition on its domestic routes after the Saudi Arabian government recently "invited" Qatar Airways (QR, Doha International (DOH)) and other carriers to begin flights in the Kingdom. Reports state that the prospect of stiff domestic competition is the likely motivating factor in nasair’s parent company, National Air Services (XY, Jeddah King Abdul Aziz (JED)), decision to go for an initial public offering on the Riyadh stock exchange which will also encompass the group’s other aviation businesses namely: NAS JET, involved in the management and lease of corporate jet aircraft, and NAS Tech, a MRO provider catering to the single-aisle aircraft and business jet sectors. Last year, both Qatar Airways and Gulf Air (GF, Bahrain Muharraq International (BAH)) were awarded licences by the Saudi Authorities permitting them to operate local and international flights as part of a tender where a further twelve foreign and local companies had also applied for a license. The issuance marked a major reform of the aviation market in Saudi Arabia, the biggest Arab economy and by far the largest country in the Gulf geographically.

Philippine Airlines (PR, Manila Ninoy Aquino International (MNL)) is planning to resume daily service between Manila and Abu Dhabi International (AUH) from October 1 according to Airline Route. This would become the first destination PAL will again serve itself in the Middle East. It currently codeshares with Emirates (EK, Dubai International (DXB)), Etihad Airways (EY, Abu Dhabi International (AUH)), Gulf Air (GF, Bahrain Muharraq International (BAH)) and Qatar Airways (QR, Doha International (DOH)) on routes from Manila to Dubai International (DXB), Abu Dhabi, Bahrain Muharraq International (BAH) and Doha International (DOH). A large percentage of the Filipino overseas population works in the Middle East. PAL president Ramon Ang has said that the carrier would currently be studying the A350 and B777X and could place an order for up to 20 aircraft. The B777X has not yet officially been launched but Boeing (BOE, Chicago O'Hare International (ORD)) is expected to launch an upgraded version of its popular B777-300(ER) aircraft soon.

Gulf Air (GF, Bahrain Muharraq International (BAH)) has retired its two A319-100s A9C-EU (c/n 1884) and A9C-EV (c/n 1901) from service and has returned both aircraft to the lessor. It had originally leased the two aircraft back in 2008. Gulf Air continues to operate 10 A330-200s, 4 A321-200s and 16 A320-200s but will reduce its fleet further as part of its major restructuring plan currently being implemented.