At the end of this spring, the national carrier FlyArna will start operating. This was announced on January 15 at an online press conference by Adel Al Ali, CEO of Air Arabia. He and the head of the State Interest Fund of Armenia (ANIF), Davit Papazyan, presented the airline’s brand. Adel Al Ali also said that all the planes that will be used by the airline will be registered in Armenia. He also said that work is underway to launch flights to Central Asia, Russia, the Middle East, the EU, and other destinations.
In September 2021, ANIF and Air Arabia announced a new national airline launched by the joint venture, and Fly Arna was chosen as the name of the company. It will operate as a budget passenger airline based at Yerevan’s Zvartnots International Airport.
Aravot asked Davit Papazyan and the director of Air Arabia whether the problems of the “black list” where the Civil Aviation Committee of Armenia and the air carriers under its subordination appeared, having not been able to fly to Europe for two years already, have been resolved, and if the Arab company would be able to fly to Europe if it had Armenian-registered planes in Armenia. In response, Davit Papazyan said that the processes that took place two years ago are still ongoing.
Read also
However, Papazyan said that they are not particularly worried about flying. According to him, the information about the possible terms and methods of resolving the issue of the “black list” will be correct information to the well-known Civil Aviation Committee.
Adel Ali, CEO of Air Arabia Group, said that they have no worries about this and that Fly Arna meets all technical standards. Davit Papazyan said that the Armenian company will have 51% of the shares and the investor Air Arabia will have 49%. Moreover, the state will finance only its share and there will be no subsidies and privileges.
We also asked if the Armenian pilots would carry out the flights in the Armenian section. In response to our observation that when it comes to the national air carrier in expert circles, this factor is important, because we saw that in the difficult conditions created by the war and the coronavirus, mainly our Armenian airlines, Armenian pilots took over cargo and people flights, Davit Papazyan answered the question really is important, and Fly Arna’s human resources policy should be clear from the outset. According to the director of ANIF, a board will be formed, which will appoint the general director and the main part of the team. The staff will be selected on the principle of combining quality and development potential.
“The only criterion that the general director will use will be what he expects from a person, be it a pilot or a person working in any position. The Armenian side took part in the work already done and it was the participation with the element of Armenianization. Human resources’ choice will be using the same culture and the same approach both for pilots and any other position.”
We were informed that the national air carrier will operate flights on two Airbus A-320 aircraft, but it is not ruled out that other aircraft will also be used. Adel Al Ali said that in the initial stage, several hundred jobs will be created, but when the flight directions increase and new planes are attracted, the number of jobs may also increase. Why they decided to implement the program together with a foreign company, David Papazyan says, their partner Air Arabia has a viable business model and years of successful experience, due to which Armenia will become a more visible and attractive destination on the international tourism map.
Lusine BUDAGHYAN
