Wataniya works its magic

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COOPER: We’re not trying to take over the world.

George Cooper, CEO of new Kuwaiti premium airline Wataniya Airways speaks to ATN about the challenges that come with starting up a new carrier and the importance of a clear strategy.

What progress have you made with setting up Wataniya?

We're well on our way; when you start an airline there are a million things that have to get done, but we've got our Air Operation Certificate (AOC), which means we can start planning our traffic routes and really getting down to business.

What about the aircraft?

We're initially getting three A320s; the first one in January 2009, the second in February and the third in October. We plan to fly to destinations in the Middle East as far west as Cairo and south as far as Dubai.

Are you concerned about starting a new airline considering the current economic climate and high oil prices?

To be honest with you I don't think you could start this airline with this model in many other places, but in Kuwait there is a gap in the market for this type of service.

All of the schedules of airlines outside of Kuwait are geared to suit their hubs, rather than to suit the Kuwait-based traveller so there is a niche there for us to look at filling. We believe that seventy-five to eighty percent of our business will definitely come from Kuwait.

Is there a danger of being over reliant on the Kuwaiti market?

We've done our homework and our research reveals that Kuwaitis want to fly on a Kuwaiti airline. They are nationally proud but at present their travel needs are not being met locally.

You've also got to remember that Kuwait is a petrol dominant economy so those rises in oil prices will turn up in the economy to be spent by people.

We do not believe that the core market demand for what were offering will reduce - it's likely to continue to grow.

What are your growth plans?

Were not pretending that this is going to be a huge airline; it's a niche carrier that's not aimed at mass market and therefore our growth plans are relatively modest - three aircraft in 2009, another three in 2010 and then another three in 2011.

We are there to meet a specific market need, not to try to take over the world, so we know exactly what we want to achieve with this venture and how we plan to do it.

Sounds like this plan has been well thought through?

We're not kidding ourselves, this is going to be challenging, but there's a lot of knowledge and experience in the team to bring to bear on this. Most of us come from premium airline backgrounds.

So what is your core focus for now?

Well, we need to tailor our product to suit the local market.

There's a lot of effort going into that and the ground handling process as well. The aircraft might be lovely but if your passengers are stuck in a crowd on the ground it's not going to feel very premium.

What about building relationships in the trade?

We will more than likely make a GSA (General Sales Agent) agreement; we're already talking to a few people about that.

Kuwait is lagging behind other countries in this region in terms of internet usage so the traditional trade distribution routes are going to be very important to us. We have to embrace the trade; our distribution model will be completely conventional.

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