Yemen's national airline plans to resume commercial flights to the Arabian Gulf and African cities while eyeing long-haul routes to Asia as it gradually rebuilds its network shrunk by a three-year conflict.
Yemenia, based out of Aden, has secured traffic rights to resume services to Dubai and Abu Dhabi "soon", and is working to obtain permits to fly to Muscat and Salalah in Oman, Asif Hussain, Yemenia duty manager for Dubai Airports, told The National on Wednesday. In Africa, it plans a return to Eritrean capital Asmara, Comoros capital Moroni and Djibouti.
"Business is getting better," Mr Hussain said. "The plan is first to open all the destinations that we suspended then we may look into new routes." The ongoing three-year conflict in Yemen has damaged the country's aviation infrastructure.
Yemenia currently serves nine destinations - including Cairo, Amman, Riyadh, Jeddah and Mumbai - with a curtailed fleet of five Airbus A320 and A310 narrow-body.
_______________
Read more:
UN envoy and Yemeni Foreign Minister discuss release of prisoners from Houthi jails
Yemen's former prime minister says peace deal still possible
Hodeidah calm after fierce fighting that damaged city's main hospital
_______________
Yemenia received delivery of an A320 Neo this week, which it aims to position for Dubai and Abu Dhabi, and expects to receive two additional A320 by 2020, Mr Hussain said.
"We have a small fleet but we're increasing it," he said. "Daily we are seeing more and more passengers on our flights."
The airline, which has flown more than 10,000 passengers so far this year, has ambitions to resume long-haul operations to Asian cities such as Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur in "future" and will talk to aircraft lessors for an A330 wide-body, he said.
"Yemenia is going to come back and we will get all our passengers back," he said.
The%20Kitchen
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%C2%A0%3C%2Fstrong%3EDaniel%20Kaluuya%2C%20Kibwe%20Tavares%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%C2%A0%3C%2Fstrong%3EKane%20Robinson%2C%20Jedaiah%20Bannerman%2C%20Hope%20Ikpoku%20Jnr%2C%20Fiona%20Marr%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203%2F5%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
MATCH INFO
Jersey 147 (20 overs)
UAE 112 (19.2 overs)
Jersey win by 35 runs
CHELSEA SQUAD
Arrizabalaga, Bettinelli, Rudiger, Christensen, Silva, Chalobah, Sarr, Azpilicueta, James, Kenedy, Alonso, Jorginho, Kante, Kovacic, Saul, Barkley, Ziyech, Pulisic, Mount, Hudson-Odoi, Werner, Havertz, Lukaku.
Smart words at Make Smart Cool
Make Smart Cool is not your usual festival. Dubbed “edutainment” by organisers Najahi Events, Make Smart Cool aims to inspire its youthful target audience through a mix of interactive presentation by social media influencers and a concert finale featuring Example with DJ Wire. Here are some of the speakers sharing their inspiration and experiences on the night.
Prince Ea
With his social media videos accumulating more half a billion views, the American motivational speaker is hot on the college circuit in the US, with talks that focus on the many ways to generate passion and motivation when it comes to learning.
Khalid Al Ameri
The Emirati columnist and presenter is much loved by local youth, with writings and presentations about education, entrepreneurship and family balance. His lectures on career and personal development are sought after by the education and business sector.
Ben Ouattara
Born to an Ivorian father and German mother, the Dubai-based fitness instructor and motivational speaker is all about conquering fears and insecurities. His talk focuses on the need to gain emotional and physical fitness when facing life’s challenges. As well managing his film production company, Ouattara is one of the official ambassadors of Dubai Expo2020.
Types of policy
Term life insurance: this is the cheapest and most-popular form of life cover. You pay a regular monthly premium for a pre-agreed period, typically anything between five and 25 years, or possibly longer. If you die within that time, the policy will pay a cash lump sum, which is typically tax-free even outside the UAE. If you die after the policy ends, you do not get anything in return. There is no cash-in value at any time. Once you stop paying premiums, cover stops.
Whole-of-life insurance: as its name suggests, this type of life cover is designed to run for the rest of your life. You pay regular monthly premiums and in return, get a guaranteed cash lump sum whenever you die. As a result, premiums are typically much higher than one term life insurance, although they do not usually increase with age. In some cases, you have to keep up premiums for as long as you live, although there may be a cut-off period, say, at age 80 but it can go as high as 95. There are penalties if you don’t last the course and you may get a lot less than you paid in.
Critical illness cover: this pays a cash lump sum if you suffer from a serious illness such as cancer, heart disease or stroke. Some policies cover as many as 50 different illnesses, although cancer triggers by far the most claims. The payout is designed to cover major financial responsibilities such as a mortgage or children’s education fees if you fall ill and are unable to work. It is cost effective to combine it with life insurance, with the policy paying out once if you either die or suffer a serious illness.
Income protection: this pays a replacement income if you fall ill and are unable to continue working. On the best policies, this will continue either until you recover, or reach retirement age. Unlike critical illness cover, policies will typically pay out for stress and musculoskeletal problems such as back trouble.
