Low-cost carrier flydubai and international powerhouse Emirates are to more closely combine their operations as part of a broad partnership aimed at stimulating growth during a difficult period for Gulf carriers.
The move will more closely combine Emirates’ widebody longer-range fleet with the single-aisle regional operations of flydubai to produce a network with 216 destinations.
Emirates currently has a widebody fleet of 259 aircraft, flying to 157 destinations, including 16 cargo-only points, while flydubai operates 58 Boeing 737 aircraft to 95 destinations.
The combined network is expected to reach 240 destinations served by 380 aircraft by 2022.
Both are owned by the government’s Investment Corporation of Dubai and are chaired by Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, who is also the chief executive of Emirates.
An announcement from Dubai said the two airlines would continue to be managed independently but would align their systems and operations, including integrated network collaboration and coordinated scheduling.
Under the agreement, the partners will expand their hub at Dubai International and work to open new city pairs.
The partnership also includes an “expansive” codeshare agreement the airlines said would align frequent flyer programs and provide a “seamless” travel experience as well as plans to further develop Dubai International Airport.
“This is an exciting and significant development for Emirates, flydubai, and Dubai aviation,’’ Sheik Ahmed said in a statement. “Both airlines have grown independently and successfully over the years, and this new partnership will unlock the immense value that the complementary models of both companies can bring to consumers, each airline, and to Dubai.”
The partnership will be rolled out in coming months with the first enhanced code-sharing arrangements starting in the last quarter of 2017.
Flydubai was launched in 2009 and opened up 63 new routes not served by Emirates in previously underserviced markets.
The plan to more closely coordinate the operations of the two airlines has been under consideration for some time.
Emirates president Tim Clark told Air Transport World at June’s Paris Air Show that it made sense for the two airlines to work together.
“There’s no competition between us, but I think we’ve just done our own thing and I’ve thought it could have been done better if it was a little more coordinated,” Clark said.
Clark said flydubai had moved from its original low-cost model towards a full-service model with lounges and lie-flat beds in business class.
“Because they’ve moved closer to us, it becomes far easier to move high-yielding passengers across, certainly between premium classes,’’ he said.
