Azerbaijan, Baku, Sept. 30 / Trend /
flydubai, Dubai's pioneering low cost airline, has doubled its network in Russia to four points with the addition of flights to Kazan and Ufa.
flydubai's inaugural flight to Kazan, the capital of the Republic of Tatarstan and the second largest city of the Volga economic region, touched down on Wednesday 21st September at 1510hrs. flydubai's CEO Ghaith Al Ghaith travelled on the inaugural flight and was welcomed at the Kremlin by Tatarstan's President, Rustam Minnikhanov.
In addition, flydubai recently launched weekly flights to Ufa, the capital of the Republic of Bashkortostan, also departing from Terminal 2 at Dubai International Airport.
Commenting on the two new destinations, flydubai CEO, Ghaith Al Ghaith, said: "Russia is a very important market for us, both in terms of business and tourist travel. With Dubai being home to more than 18,000 Russian expats there is a growing need for quality, low cost, direct flights to these destinations.
"The UAE is increasingly viewed as an ideal platform for Russian businesses to extend their reach to new markets. Russia is a growing economy, having grown by four per cent in 2010 and a further 3.8 per cent in the first five months of 2011. Through our expanding flight routes we look forward to contributing to this continuing growth."
The Kazan Kremlin, which has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage site, is just one of the attractions the city has to offer. Kazan will also host the XXVII World Student Games in 2013 and several matches during the 2018 FIFA World Cup, with the new flydubai routes ensuring that the UAE's football fans will have a direct flight option to attend matches.
Ufa, with an economy based on fuel, energy and engineering complexes, is also the largest oil refining centre in the Volga and the Urals, as well as a scientific and transport hub for Russia.
flydubai also recently launched flights to Kiev, Donetsk and Kharkiv in Ukraine and in addition to the new and existing routes in Russia, Baku in Azerbaijan, Yerevan in Armenia, and Ashgabat in Turkmenistan, the airline now flies to 10 emerging CIS destinations.