Ras Al Khaimah expects 100,000 winter tourists

RAK International Airport’s seasonal charter flight programme kicks off, with larger arrival facilities to welcome new visitors.

The airport is expecting 100,000 tourists from Europe, CIS and Russia to pass through during the upcoming winter months.

RAK International Airport commenced the first of 10 weekly charters on October 2, starting its winter schedule earlier than its usual end of October season launch.

The news follows RAK International Airport’s most successful year to date, with 2016's key moments including Qatar Airways’, Air India Express’ and Egypt Air Cargo’s operational start-ups.

RAK Department of Civil Aviation and RAK International Airport, chairman Engr. Sheikh Salem bin Sultan Al Qasimi, said in a statement: “RAK Airport has worked hard and successfully to promote Ras Al Khaimah as a growing tourist destination, and as a result has attracted a number of new scheduled and charter airlines over the past few months. In doing this RAK Airport is alleviating some of the country’s airspace congestion and therefore contributing significantly to the continued growth of the UAE’s aviation sector. The key is not just to grow the aviation footprint of RAK Airport, but also to be a top performer in terms of operational excellence.”

Recently RAK Airport expanded the size of its arrival terminal facilities by 50% in preparation for the winter flights.

RAK Airport chief executive officer Mohammed Qazi commented: “We have come a long way over the last few years, and current results are due to the tremendous support we receive from the Government of Ras Al Khaimah. We have a simple philosophy, which is to control the costs, focus on safety and deliver consistently on our operational KPIs.”