Air Partner reveals £6.8m windfall from the Arab Spring

Sudden demand for exit flights from Middle East trouble-spots bolstered profits for Air Partner, a private aviation services firm.

Air Partner saw a rise in business during the Arab Spring. AFP

Evacuating 12,000 foreign workers from Arab countries gripped by unrest produced a £6.8 million (Dh39.1m) windfall for a private jet operator based in the UK.

Air Partner organised flights to take expatriates home from Libya, Egypt, Bahrain and Tunisia at the start of the year. The charter brokerage company yesterday posted a 93 per cent rise in profits before tax to £5.3m for the year ended in July, helped in part by its operations in Arab Spring nations.

"Air Partner's financial security and its reputation for service to governments, non-governmental organisations and multinational corporate clients counted strongly in the flurry of evacuations," said the company.

Violence and protests in several countries in the region triggered a scramble for flights out. International banks, oil conglomerates, construction firms and foreign embassies all rushed to repatriate their staff.

The instability proved a mixed blessing for the aviation industry.

Large carriers faced disruptions to services in the region and a rise in fuel costs caused by concerns about oil supplies. Smaller, private jet companies, however, with more nimble operations, found opportunities in the unrest. Many were inundated with calls.

Air Partner generated revenue of £6.8m from commercial jet and freight booking of flights chartered in response to the Arab Spring. It also benefited from sending repatriation and aid flights to Japan after the earthquake and tsunami in March.

Jets were sourced from Dubai and as far afield as the UK, Germany, France and the US to evacuate clients in the Middle East and North Africa.

In contrast, some Gulf airlines felt financial pain from the unrest. Gulf Air was forced to push back its break-even projection by a year to mid-2013 after its passenger traffic was down more than a quarter over the first five months of this year.