The Deputy Director General for Kuwait International Airport Affairs, Mr. Saleh Al-Fadaghi, revealed the launch of charter flights from Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Airport starting from July 2022.
Al-Fadaghi told a local Arabic daily that the Saad International Airport will now be used for chartered flights for short trips as is the case during every summer season.
Al-Fadaghi told the daily, the Directorate-General for Civil Aviation has taken a number of proactive measures to deal with this year’s summer season, coinciding with the abolition of travel restrictions that were introduced following the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. Al-Fadaghi also confirmed the administration’s commitment to a plan to ensure facilitating travel and arrival procedures at the Kuwait International Airport.
Al-Fadaghi said charter flights will take off again from the Saad International Airport this summer, as was the case in previous seasons, especially since some of the stations to which these flights depart do not operate on a scheduled basis in the summer, such as Bulgaria, but there are passengers desire to travel that destination, so one of the investors rents a plane in coordination with us before the flight date, and all investors can now apply to operate charter flights.
He indicated the DGCA has developed a well-studied plan to keep pace with the increasing number of travelers during the summer season, and has held several coordination meetings with the agencies operating at the airport, to deal with the movement of passengers in a way that facilitates the procedures for their departure and arrival to the country.
He stated that the Cabinet’s decision last May, to cancel all restrictions of the Corona pandemic, contributed to the increase in the number of travelers to and from Kuwait, and the best evidence of that is what happened during the Eid al-Fitr holiday, which witnessed a steady turnout in the number of travelers, matched by a distinguished flexible and efficient performance by the operators working at the airport.
When asked about the permanent crowding of passengers during the seasons, Al-Fadaghi stated that the congestion of passengers is due to many factors, some of which are technical due to the possibility of a malfunction in devices that need time to be repaired, which did not happen during the Eid holiday, and the other factor is the connection of flights with an integrated network, whether in departure or arrival, as well as the factor of sudden malfunctions in some aircraft, and finally the closeness of the flight schedule due to its association with external travel stations, and we have worked to address this by providing an integrated staff to facilitate the movement of passengers.
He revealed that the four buildings of Kuwait International Airport are ready to operate at full capacity, and the number of daily flights is expected to reach 400 during the summer, explaining that the airline is still receiving new requests from airlines to open new travel destinations.
He indicated that the airport did not reach the expected capacity, and said, “we can raise it to 100%, but that depends on the requests of airlines for full operation of their schedules in the summer, as some of them are in the process of measuring the desires of travelers before starting to open new destinations.”
Al-Fadaghi expects that the capacity for aircraft and passenger traffic will reach 100% by the end of this year.
He pointed out that the airport has met all security and safety requirements, in a way that anticipates the control imposed by international bodies.
“We have departments concerned to implement security and safety measures for passengers and government agencies working at the airport before the regulatory authorities come,” he added.
Al-Fadaghi confirmed that the airport enjoys the highest standards of security due to its application of international programs, explaining that there are no security gaps by the international control authorities.
He indicated that a committee was formed by the concerned authorities to study the effects of the Corona pandemic at various levels, not only on the aviation sector, which is the biggest loser.
He stressed that there is a tendency to set up an international operator to manage T2 Airport, which will be a smart airport based on the latest systems.
Al-Fadaghi also stressed the drones represent a security concern and fear, and therefore the safety sector at the airport has formed a committee in coordination with the Ministries of Interior and Defense to issue legislation and mechanisms to deter any violations that may occur as a result of the wrong practices of these aircraft.
He stressed that there were no actual incidents of illegal entry of drones into the corridors of the airport and in the aircraft yards.
When asked about the mistreatment of some employees with arriving passengers, Al-Fadaghi replied that all employees are trained on how to deal with the public, and we have official channels through which the traveler can file complaints against any employee.
Al-Fadaghi indicated that most of the problems faced by passengers are the lack of certainty of the requirements of the countries they are leaving to, which causes many to cancel their flights as a result.
Al-Fadaghi indicated that the airport has reactivated an easier service for domestic workers, which aims to receive domestic workers coming from abroad by individuals designated for this, so that they complete their travel procedures for a nominal fee.
Al-Fadaghi stated that it requires all travelers to be present at least 3 hours before the flight departure and to confirm the travel procedures for departures and arrivals in accordance with the circulars issued in this regard.
Al-Fadaghi mentioned that there are a number of security measures that are applied to travelers, including but not limited to:
* Preventing the entry of wires of more than 3 meters in length to aircraft.
* Unlock laptops before boarding the plane
* Prevent flammable liquids such as gas lighters
6 summer routines
1 – Fulfilling all security and safety requirements, in harmony with maintaining the quality of services
2 – Field plans to deal with incoming and outgoing passengers
3 – Opening new destinations and travel stations that were previously closed
4 – Field work teams work 24 hours a day
5 – Increasing the number of counters in the luggage and passports hall
6 – Facilitating the movement of passengers from car parks to boarding the plane
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