Bahrain MPs call for Gulf Air probe

PROBE CALL: MPs in Bahrain are calling for an investigation into the running of Gulf Air.

An urgent request by Bahraini MPs for an investigation into Gulf Air's affairs will be included in parliament's agenda next week.

MPs have expressed their concerns about the burden the company was becoming on the national budget. They say that company officials were given one year to solve problems, but claim nothing has changed.

The call comes as the carrier announced plans to ground its fleet of Airbus SAS A340 long-haul jetliners and hedge on fuel purchases in order to cut costs, Reuters reported.

The carrier will replace the five four-engine A340s with four twin-engine Boeing 777-model planes, CEO Bjorn Naf said on Tuesday. Gulf Air intends to take delivery of four Airbus A330 widebodies and five A320s this year.

"They come to us every time and say things are improving, but we have not seen anything yet," said parliament financial and economic affairs committee vice-chairman Abdulhaleem Murad in comments published by Gulf Daily News on Wednesday.

"The probe will look into losses, the money the government has pumped in and how it has been spent," he told the paper.

He said that MPs were also concerned with the airline's employment policies such as the pay packages for top officials, which he claimed were higher than leading airlines.

"There are many expatriate employees being hired, while qualified Bahrainis are not being utilised. The airline has not yet come up with a clear policy to Bahrainise jobs," he claimed.

Murad said that the airline's decisions to open offices and routes, or close them would also be looked at.

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