By NNN-WAM
Dubai : Emirates and Etihad Airways, the airlines of Dubai and Abu Dhabi, respectively, are exploring areas of collaboration that include engineering and technology.
The rival airlines, which do not fly to or from each other's home bases, have started talks aimed at reducing costs, Etihad chief executive officer James Hogan said in an interview to the London-based weekly magazine Middle East Economic Digest.
"We are in discussions with Emirates to establish areas of opportunity and synergies that could help us both," it quoted Hogan as saying.
Middle Eastern airlines are expanding rapidly to take advantage of growing passenger and freight numbers. Airlines from the region have been identified as the best current and future customers for plane manufacturers Airbus and Boeing.
Hogan said talks between the two airlines were at an early stage but engineering and technology had been identified as two areas for possible collaboration.
Emirates is the region's largest and the world's eighth largest airline. It posted revenues of Dh29.8 billion in 2006.
Both airlines placed major new aircraft orders at the Paris Air Show last month. Emirates announced it is ordering eight more Airbus A380s, bringing its total order for the superjumbo to 55 while Etihad said it is buying four A340-600s, five A330-200s and three A330-200 freighter planes for delivery between 2008 and 2011 but delayed its order of four A380 aircraft until 2013.
Middle East airlines posted the highest increase in the number of passengers carried globally in May. Airlines ferried 14.6 per cent more passengers in May 2007 compared to May 2006, reported the Airports Council International (ACI) last week.
The region also led increases in passenger traffic over the January to May period as well as the year ended May 2007.
Global passenger traffic growth for May was recorded by ACI at about 5 per cent, making the region's growth more than double that of the world's.
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