Egypt Air miffed with Air Arabia's Cairo flights

Airlines that do not operate business class are not permitted to land at Cairo international. The Egyptian Civil Aviation Authority imposes the strict rule to curb discount airlines coming in and undercutting the competition.

Air Arabia, the only listed airline in the UAE, has a curtained off business class section on its Cairo flights despite running a low cost model. It flies three times weekly to Cairo and only operates the business service to meet requirements to land at the airport. There are no plans to introduce the same across other routes.

“I am, of course, not happy,” EgyptAir chairman and chief executive Sameh Al Hefny told reporters at the International Air Transport Association (IATA) annual meet in Qatar. Air Arabia was unavailable to comment.