Air Arabia has cut out a very interesting market segment for itself. Surrounded by full fare behemoth airlines in the region, it has differentiated from them all by being a true bare fares low-cost carrier. Akin only to flyDubai in the region. The airline has been gradually, and organically I would add, been expanding its fleet and network. With the latest additions to the network being: Tashkent and Addis Ababa.
Air Arabia's Newest Destinations: Tashkent and Addis Ababa
The UAE based airline is not the type of carrier you would travel with if searching for the highest standards of comfort. Its key selling points are operating to underserved destinations within the UAE and beyond along with offering some of the cheapest fares on the market.
The first of the affirmations in above is true about Air Arabia's new flight to Tashkent. In and of itself Tashkent, capital of Uzbekistan, isn't all that popular a destination but, Ras Al Khaimah International Airport is so even less. Nonetheless, that is exactly the route Air Arabia has commenced starting December 27th 2024. The service will have a 3x weekly frequency (Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday) following these timings:
| Flight Number | Departure Airport | Airport Code | Departure Time | Arrival Airport | Airport Code | Arrival Time | Days | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | G9902 | Ras al Khaimah | RKT | 09:10 | Tashkent | TAS | 13:20 | Friday |
| G9903 | Tashkent | TAS | 14:40 | Ras al Khaimah | RKT | 17:10 | Friday |
Proof that the Ras al Khaimah to Tashkent route is quite a niche one, resides in its frequency. Flight G9902 will operate only once per week, every Friday. This gives off much of a trial and exploration route more than a convinced effort. The airline might be trying to sample an almost untouched market.
Along with Tashkent, Addis Ababa will also soon enter the Air Arabia network map. The airline is preparing to launch services from Sharjah, its main base in the UAE, to the Ethiopian capital starting January 30th 2025. The UAE based low cost carrier will effectively become the only direct and non-stop option to travel between the two cities. Ethiopian Airlines does operate flights, however, they are exclusively cargo operations and do not carry any passengers. If success comes from this route we might see some competition pop up. Anyhow, operations for the Sharjah to Addis Ababa flights will follow this schedule:
| Flight Number | Departure Airport | Airport Code | Departure Time | Arrival Airport | Airport Code | Arrival Time | Days | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G9738 | Sharjah | SHJ | 21:25 | Addis Ababa | ADD | 00:40 | Tu/Th/Sat |
| G9739 | Addis Ababa | ADD | 01:30 | Sharjah | SHJ | 06:40 | Tu/Th/Sat |
One Aircraft To Conquer All Routes – The Air Arabia Way
No surprises though when it comes to the aircraft type the airline will be using for these two new services. Air Arabia is an all Airbus A320 family aircraft operator. Meaning it only flies using A320s and A321s in both ceo and neo versions. Currently it has a fleet 81 aircraft strong.
It's a low-cost carrier so don't expect too many comforts onboard, however, you these planes do come with some sort of entertainment system. Specifically a stream-to-device system (SkyTime) that allows you to watch and listen to content from the airline's catalog on your phone or computer.
The Air Arabia A320 family jets come in a one class configuration with seats setup in a 3-3 (six abreast) layout throughout the cabin.
