Ram On Growing Emirates

     Ram Menen, Emirates SkyCargo Senior Vice President Cargo takes a deep breath.
     SkyCargo has just signed a mega-deal to purchase eight Boeing B777-200LRF freighters, the largest single day order that the U.S. manufacturer has ever received for the type, as part of a 42-airplane order of B777’s, that absolutely sent writers looking for new superlatives at the recently concluded Dubai Air Show.
     To put the order in some kind of perspective, the deal meant so much to Boeing that the top executive of the U.S. airplane manufacturer took his show on the road visiting Dubai for the first time in his life to make sure the deal was done, and to stand with other executives as the announcement was beamed out across the world.
     Combination of these advanced twin-engine, all cargo airplanes that can lift 103 tons apiece and fly 5,000 nautical miles all the way from Dubai to Tokyo non-stop, will put Emirates both near the top (or over it) in the race as one of the largest and most profitable airline/cargo operations in the world.
     But with deliveries set to commence in 2009 and continue unabated for years after that, Emirates’ bold B777 fleet will create a new backbone for the Dubai based carrier’s world service expansion plan.
     “It’s an absolutely brilliant airplane,” Ram says his eyes widening.
     “By the time all is said and done, based on current orders, our all-cargo fleet will be approaching 20 aircraft within the next eight years.
     “With the right mix of heavy lifters such as B777 and A380 and B747, we also have added A310-300Fs to our medium-haul regional mix with great success.
     “Right now we are taking markets cautiously as worldwide slowdown continues.
     “But we know that the cargo business will continue its upward spiral and keep growing, even as pauses along the way afford us the opportunity to sharpen our approach.
     “Our current success is due in no small part to being in the right markets at the right time, while carefully managing assets and keeping a close eye on costs especially runaway fuel that is affecting everyone.
     “We have assembled a first-class professional air cargo sales and service team worldwide.
     “SkyCargo is close to the markets we serve with an open expansive attitude toward building relationships in all aspects of our business that are both dependable and long lasting.
     “We know that being a leader in air cargo for the long haul is no easy task.
     “To secure long lasting relationships takes imagination, determination and the willingness to both invest in our product and get paid a fair price for what we do.
     “SkyCargo earns each account, one customer at a time.”
     Ram Menen is the most public face on a SkyCargo organization that has roared out of the desert during the past two decades from a place that used to be thought of as little more than “Oasis Dubai”.
     Today, Dubai is hosting one of the biggest building booms on earth that in turn is also fueling almost everything else in the region including Emirates Airline.
     But the amount of pride toward Emirates that is felt all across this region from people in all walks in life was keenly evident last weekend when an Airbus A380 aircraft in full Emirates livery affected a fly-by above Dubai’s Jumeirah Beach, accompanied by the Patrouille de France, the French Acrobatic Air Force Team.
     As spontaneous applause erupted from below, the mighty sky vessel, and the world’s largest commercial aircraft, glided gracefully past a place drawn together at this historic moment, flanked by the French acrobatic jets which streamed red, white and blue-colored trails in the sky.
     Emirates is the world’s largest customer for the A380 aircraft with the first of its 45 A380’s on order to be delivered in early 2007.

     “Some people may look at our aircraft acquisition program and wonder:
     “Where will the cargo and passenger business come from?
     “We know based just on the big construction project at Jebel Ali International Airport (JXB) alone, that we will need considerable lift to satisfy demand being created here in Dubai that will be served by the new airport city gateway.
     “You cannot take an isolated view of Emirates growth plan without considering the home market we serve, that seems to be growing up and out all over the place, all at once.
     “The development plans in both business and real estate here are just tremendous and bound to continue throughout the next decades of the 21st Century.”
     Earlier this month on November 16, SkyCargo deepened its service network with a second daily flight into New York City, JFK.
     “The new service adds capacity to New York where business has been good.
     “We also serve New York with twice-weekly Boeing 747 freighter services with a total capacity of 225 tons.
     “Belly-hold capacity across that route segment in the Airbus A340-500 aircraft is about 15 tons.
     “But New York is an extremely important destination for Emirates as both the great commercial center of the world with a strengthening U.S. dollar that is building exports.
     "The early morning departure of our new daily service to New York is ideal for priority and time-sensitive products.
     “As example the night flight from Dubai allows the cargo division to carry mail, parcels and courier packages from integrators and post offices at the end of the working day gathered from around our route network in the Middle East, Indian subcontinent, Far East, Australasia and Africa.
     “The flight arrives in New York in the morning, with shipments ready for onward delivery to companies.”
     In addition to EK’s second New York City frequency, daily flights to and from Dubai to Korea that commenced May 1 have done well offering about 13 tons belly lift space for cargo via the A340-600.
     Another ’05 start up to Alexandria, Egypt marked the second gateway to that country after Cairo.
     Early next year Emirates new nonstop daily service between Dubai and Beijing will begin February 1, 2006 with an Airbus 340-300.
     Beijing will be Emirates' fourth destination in China, after Shanghai, Hong Kong and Dalian (cargo-only). Emirates’ daily services to Hamburg, its fourth German gateway, will also launch on February 1, 2006.
     “We are excited about both Beijing and Hamburg.
     Beijing will offer our service the capital of China and all the growth potential and excitement there. Hamburg is the second largest city in Germany.
     As a long-time center for maritime commerce, the air cargo specialist can only salivate at the possibilities of adding SkyCargo service to the Middle East and our network beyond.”

UAE At Thirty Four From left to right Sheikh Maktoum bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai; Sheikh Khalid bin Mahammed Al Qassimi, Ruler of Sharjah; Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Ruler of Dubai; Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, Ruler of Abu Dhabi; Sheikh Rashid bin Humaid Al Nuaimi, Ruler of Ajman; Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad Al Sharqi, Ruler of Fujairah; and Sheikh Rashin bin Ahmed Al Mualla, Crown Prince of Umm Al Quwain. This picture was taken December 2, 1971 under the first flag of The United Arab Emirates.      Once upon a time the United Arab Emirates was a series of small sheikhdoms on the coastline of the Persian Gulf that prospered in the Middle East from the seventh century onwards.      After the arrival of European colonists in the 1820’s and attacks on British-owned shipping operating in the Gulf region, local Arab rulers signed a treaty with the British in 1853, under which they accepted British military protection.      The sheikhdoms which became known as the Trucial States carried on, largely unmolested and ignored until the 1950's when the British beat retreat lifting controls as part of its post-imperial reality.      The United Arab Emirates came into being as an independent state on December 2, 1971.      This Friday (December 2), the United Arab Emirates marks the thirty-fourth anniversary of its emergence onto the world stage.      The UAE, a federation of seven emirates, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ra's al-Khaimah, Fujairah, Umm al-Quwain and Ajman, lies in the southeastern corner of the Arabian peninsula.      With an area of around 83,400 square kilometers, and with a population of a little over 5 million, due to reforms of government institutions designed to improve transparency and efficiency, UAE has achieved much in terms of its economic and social development, while it has also continued to play an increasingly active role in international affairs.      Economic progress has been fuelled in part by the marked rise in world oil and gas prices. Night view of Abu Dhabi, capitol city of the Emirates      With the fourth largest proven oil reserves in the world, and the fourth largest proven gas reserves too, the UAE produces around 2.5 million barrels of oil a day, most of which is exported.      This year, they are expected to reach US$ 40 billion, up from US$ 30 billion in 2004, with a further rise to US$ 42.7 billion being predicted by the U.S. Energy Information Agency for next year.      At the same time though, the UAE has long pursued a policy of diversifying its economy away from dependence on oil and gas, and the hydrocarbons sector now accounts for less than a third of Gross Domestic Product.      Other sectors of importance are heavy industry (including petrochemicals and aluminum) and the financial and services sectors.      The inauguration during the year of the Dubai International Finance Centre, DIFC, is expected to provide a major boost to the country's finance industry.      Trade is also important—the country's major ports, such as those in Dubai, Sharjah and Fujairah, are significant not just for imports and exports, but also for trans-shipment, evidence of the way in which the UAE has capitalized on its strategic location between East and West to emerge as a major commercial hub.      That process has been enhanced by growth at its six international airports, including those of Dubai and Abu Dhabi, the latter now commencing a multi-billion dollar expansion plan.      In November 2005, plans were announced for another international airport, at Jebel Ali, southwest of Dubai, which when completed, will be the largest airport in the world.      Among the key beneficiaries of this investment in the transport infrastructure will be the country's three fast expanding airlines, Emirates, based in Dubai, and the newer Etihad, based in Abu Dhabi, and Air Arabia, based in Sharjah.      All three airlines, as well as other carriers serving the UAE, have benefited from continuing growth in the tourism sector, which is already contributing around 20 percent of Dubai's economy, with over ten million visitors a year arriving from around the globe. Whether it is the tallest building in the world under construction, or an indoor winter wonderland that opens Friday, Dubai is growing up all at once as the United Arab Emirates celebrates thirty four years.      Other emirates, too, are benefiting from the emergence of the UAE as one of the world's most popular holiday destinations, with hotels reporting record levels of occupancy.      Key to this interest are exciting and different attractions such as the world's premier winter wonderland.      When the Ski Dubai Dome opens this Friday inside a brand new, shopping center called Mall of the Emirates, visitors, many of whom are Gulf Arabs, could have a life altering experience as they touch snow for the first time. Ski Dubai, is a man-made mountainous scene as big as three football fields with 6,000 tons of snow that holds up to 1,500 visitors.      Après-ski pleasures include hot chocolate or a fondue by a crackling fireplace at either the Avalanche or St. Moritz cafes, perched on the slopes.      The tourism boom is also being complemented by growth in the exhibitions and conferences market, this, in turn, prompting the building of more hotels and conference centers.      Perhaps the most visible sign of growth, however, is the remarkable boom in property development, which began several years ago in Dubai, but now, is spreading to the other emirates.      Superlatives have become almost commonplace, with Dubai currently constructing the tallest building in the world (Burj Dubai, or Dubai Tower), the largest reclamation projects and the world (the offshore Palm Islands) as well as many other projects.      Around twenty percent of all of the world's tower cranes are now said to be working in Dubai.