Following its arrival in Kuwait, on 9th December, and undergoing its flight and technical testing, the official national carrier of Kuwait commenced commercial operations of its new flagship aircraft, the Boeing 777-300ER, with two flights to Dubai, on 15 December.
Passengers on the flight were the first to experience travelling on Kuwait Airways’ new flagship, with world-class interiors and on-board features set to rival the best-in-class offerings in global aviation today.
Flight KU671 enters the aviation history books as the first commercial flight to be operated by Kuwait Airways with its dynamic new livery.
One of the most noted features of Kuwait Airways’ Boeing 777-300ER is that, in economy class, the official national airline of Kuwait has adopted a nine-abreast (3-3-3) seating configuration.
This means that the airline has placed passenger comfort at the heart of its product offering by removing a complete column of seats in the middle section of the seating plan. Most airlines operating the Boeing 777-300ER go with four seats in the center section. As a consequence, this offers Kuwait Airways passengers some of the widest spacing for seats in economy class.
After welcoming the first passengers on board Flight KU617 to Dubai, Al Roumi said: “We are delighted to be launching our flagship aircraft’s first commercial flight as scheduled for December 2016; the first services on our network to operate with our new aircraft and bearing the dynamic new livery.”
“While the Boeing 777-300ER is primarily geared to long-haul destinations, Dubai is our highest frequency destinations [21 times, per week]; so, we felt that for the first commercial flights we would showcase the new product to passengers who are some of our most loyal and frequent flyers,” Al Roumi added.
Established in 1953 as a private company, Kuwait Airways was initially 50% owned by the Kuwaiti government; In 1962, the government assumed 100% ownership, making it the longest serving, official state carrier operating from the Arabian Gulf Region.
In 2016, Kuwait Airways announced a five-year transformation strategy with a mandate of reasserting the official national carrier of Kuwait’s proud legacy and status, within the regional aviation market, while also reclaim the position as the “preferred airline linking Kuwait to the world”.
A member of the Arab Air Carriers Organization and employing over 4,800 people, Kuwait Airways’ head office is in the heart of Kuwait City, close to Kuwait International Airport. The airline currently provides regular scheduled services to 37 international destinations in the Far East, Middle East, Europe and North America.
In 2017, the airline is expected to cross the milestone of serving over three million passengers, per year.
Kuwait Airways’ fleet of 22 aircraft currently consists of 7 x A320-200CEO (completed delivery Q2 2015), 5 x A330s (completed delivery Q4 2015), 4 x A340-300s, 3 x A330-200, 2 x Boeing 777-200s, 1 x Boeing 747-400.
On 9th December 2016, Kuwait Airways received the first of 10 Boeing 777-300ERs, with expected completion of delivery of the final aircraft in Q3 2017. Further additions to the fleet will include 15 A320neo’s (delivery to start in 2018) and 10 A350s. Once the delivery of these new aircraft is concluded, Kuwait Airways will boast the youngest commercial airline fleet in the world.
