UAE to get new cargo carrier

CARGO CARRIER: Midex will use Al Ain airport as its hub of operations. (Getty Images)

Privately owned Midex International Group said on Tuesday it plans to launch a cargo carrier in the UAE that will start operations by mid-February, flying to six destinations.

Midex Airlines will start with cargo flights to Orly in France, Mumbai and Kochi in India, Dhaka in Bangladesh, Istanbul and Beirut, it said in a statement.

The airline will have 15 aircraft by 2012 as it seeks to expand its network to 10 destinations, including China and Sri Lanka, director-general Jassim Al-Bastaki said.

"We are ready to start flights at the latest mid-February this year, and we have secured all approvals," Al-Bastaki told Reuters by telephone.

"Within three to four years, we will add six Boeing aircraft to our fleet. Moreover, our parent company Midex International owns six aircraft [Boeing 747s] on lease to different European airlines, which we plan to bring to the UAE within three years."

Midex already has six Airbus A300B4-203F and one Boeing B747-200F that have arrived in Abu Dhabi ahead of the launch.

Bastaki declined to disclose the cost of the aircraft, but said all aircraft purchases were financed by the parent company of the airline.

Midex is also tying up with Emirates airline and Etihad Airways to transport cargo from the UAE, he added.

Midex Airlines, which has chosen UAE'S Al Ain airport as its hub, plans to launch passenger services shortly, president Issam Khairallah said earlier in the statement. It received licences for cargo and passenger operations last year.

Midex expects to carry at least 200 tonnes of cargo a day initially, Khairallah said. (Reuters)

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