Airport needs to add 100-million-passenger capacity

30 July 2013 eTN - Global Travel Industry News

If you thought being at the home airport of the largest airline in the world in international traffic and departing from an airport that is equally busy 24/7 means capacity, you're wrong in Dubai,

Dubai International, its main airport, is planning to add capacity to handle more than 100 million passengers by 2018, up from a current capacity of about 60 million and a previous goal of 90 million, by continuing with plans to build a fourth concourse and by improving the facility's operations, Paul Griffiths, chief executive of Dubai Airports, told The Wall Street Journal in a recent interview.

The government-owned company will also look to accelerate the capacity expansion of the new Al Maktoum International Airport, which is currently forecast to manage 160 million passengers by 2030, and potentially move Emirates to the new facility before 2020. Home carrier Emirates had originally been penciled in to move from Dubai International to the new airport in 2027.

Its credentials as a transport hub played a key role in Dubai's recovery and the emirate is now looking to further increase capacity at its two international airports as it eyes economic expansion, according to the chief executive of Dubai Airports Co., which manages the facilities.

The plan is to move the Emirates hub sooner than originally forecast. A new focus is to develop the master plan that enables to create enough capacity at Dubai World Central to migrate the hub of Emirates.

The total infrastructure costs for Dubai World Central were originally forecast at about US$33 billion. The passenger targets Al Maktoum should increase beyond 160 million passengers by a "significant" amount, but the company was still "working on the numbers". Dubai World Central first opened for cargo operations in 2010 and will begin passenger operations in October.

Dubai International, which currently hosts Emirates, became the world's second busiest for international traffic in February handling some 4.8 million passengers, up 15% on year, according to Airports Council International, behind only London's Heathrow which managed about 5.6 million. The Dubai hub handled a total 57 million passengers last year, and Dubai Airports forecasts it will surpass 65 million this year, while Heathrow catered to 70 million last year.

Emirates currently makes up about 64% of passenger traffic through Dubai International, while 10.7% of the traffic is accounted for by low-cost carrier Flydubai.

Emirates, which is the world's largest airline by international traffic and a key component of Dubai's ambitions, continues to grow at a rapid pace with passenger traffic increasing 16% to 39.4 million in the year to March 31. It had 198 aircraft on order in May worth more than US$71 billion at list prices.


Flights of fancy

26 July 2013 - from www.ey.com - Ernst and Young's client magazine

"A line of dignitaries moves forward along the red carpet to the mobile stairway, led by the then ruler of Dubai, HH Sheikh Maktoum bin Rashid Al Maktoum. As the leased A310 climbs into the sky, the camera pans over the beaming faces of the leadership of the Emirate of Dubai on board, while officials await their arrival on the tarmac at Karachi International.

The year is 1985. The moment is the inaugural flight of what is destined to become the Middle East’s biggest airline: Emirates.

Right behind HH Sheikh Maktoum that day is HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, the man who would lead a company to global pre-eminence. Under his guidance, Emirates has grown from a tiny airline, dwarfed by regional competitors in one of the world’s sleepiest locales, to a global powerhouse challenging the complacency of the world’s flag carriers.

And, along the way, the Emirate of Dubai has been transformed from a desert backwater into perhaps the foremost hub for global trade, logistics and tourism.

As befits HH the Sheikh’s entrepreneurial nature, he serves in a plethora of positions too numerous to mention. Among the most prominent, he is Chairman and Chief Executive of Emirates Airline and Group, Chairman of flydubai, President of Dubai Civil Aviation Authority and Chairman of Dubai Airports.

A symbol of Dubai’s success, it’s a sight to see him climb purposefully into his distinctive Porsche Cayenne as he does the rounds every day in the Emirate to keep track of his many interests. “You must wonder how I find time to do all these jobs,” he quipped at an oil and gas event in Dubai last year.

The Emirates Group has kept a very close watch on how the world is evolving, and its growth has reflected the global patterns of trade. “We expand to wherever makes sense for the business,” HH Sheikh Ahmed says. “We have a long wish list of destinations, which we’re gradually rolling out as aircraft arrive.” Last year, Emirates opened 15 new routes - a record year for destination launches.

The power of Emirates continues to grow with each new destination, of which there are now 133 in 77 countries.

“A particular strength for Emirates is the size of its network, enabling us to activate business between all sorts of city pairs, for example within China and Africa or throughout China and Brazil, and exploiting east-west connectivity through Dubai. The strength of our business model and the healthy spread of risk at many levels have been the main factors that have helped us through the more difficult times,” HH Sheikh Ahmed says.

“From the beginning, I have concentrated on making and keeping the strategy of Emirates very focused: to grow organically, connect cities across the world via Dubai, offer unbeatable value for money and provide an unmatched level of service,” he adds. “By following this strategy, we have been profitable in all of our years of operation, apart from year two.”

Dubai-based low-cost carrier flydubai has also prospered under HH Sheikh Ahmed’s tutelage. It was launched by the Government of Dubai in March 2008, and began operations in June 2009 to Beirut, Lebanon.

“The vision was to provide a low-cost alternative on already popular routes from Dubai, while opening up destinations that were underserved by the UAE.

The airline now flies to more than 60 destinations, no small achievement in just three years,” he says proudly.

Pricing and network remain critical to the success of flydubai. To make travel more accessible for everyone, flydubai offers unbundled fares whereby the fare includes the cost of the seat, all taxes and hand baggage, with everything else offered as an optional extra, putting the passenger in control of their spend. With this strategy, in its first year of operations, traffic to Lebanon and Egypt grew at double digit rates, with Jordan growing as much as 40%.

“I think pricing and network remain critical to the success of flydubai. I know the unbundled fare policy, combined with low fares, has been very attractive to customers, allowing more people to travel, more often. This customer service model has worked surprisingly well.”

Like any global entrepreneur, however, HH Sheikh Ahmed’s focus remains on leanness and efficiency. “One of the common challenges to any airline, low cost, full service or otherwise, is the cost of fuel. This continues to be a real thorn in the side of our operations. In the last financial year, Emirates’ fuel bill was up by 15% to US$7.6b.”

But offsetting this cost challenge, there is a low average fleet age, which means the airline operates more fuel-efficient engines.

Overall, HH the Sheikh is optimistic about the future, but he is only too aware, given the intensely competitive environment and the global forces at play - such as the economy and oil prices - that the airline needs to remain smart and reactive and stay ahead of the game.

“I think any business that wishes to be successful cannot stand still when the world is moving and changing so quickly,” HH Sheikh Ahmed says. Indeed, the brand has a formidable reputation for pioneering innovative new ideas in the aviation sector: in 1993, Emirates became the first airline to introduce telecommunications on an Airbus - in all three classes.

HH Sheikh Ahmed also points to the billions of dollars of investment spanning Emirates’ fleet, aircraft interiors, lounges, products and services to deliver an experience customers are eager to repeat and share.

In commending the team around him, HH Sheikh Ahmed cites the collective wisdom of the founding management team and staff, who are committed to delivering daily, as one of the key reasons for Emirates’ success.

“The Emirates Group’s greatest asset is its staff. Every year, our employees accomplish remarkable feats that help to keep us moving forward. The cultural diversity of our staff really adds to the way we do business and it is crucial that any new employees fit into this very international environment.

“There is just no room for slackness in the airline business,” HH adds. “So Emirates seeks the very best on the market.” Fortunately for him, given the strength of the brand and the well-known success of his aviation enterprise, they have plenty of applicants keen to join the team of 68,000 people across the world.

With his quizzical gaze and softly spoken mien, HH Sheikh Ahmed’s demeanor exudes the calm of a man in control not only of his own destiny, but that of the tens of thousands who work for him.

In 2011, a report by Oxford Economics found that aviation contributed US$22b to Dubai’s GDP, or 28% of the total, and supported 224,000, or 19%, of jobs in an Emirate that today has a population of only 1.5 million.

“Aviation and Dubai go hand in hand. Unlike the trend in other countries, the UAE places aviation at the center of its economy and the results of that approach over the past 25 years are clear,” HH says. “As a result, Emirates invests billions of dollars each year in its growth strategy, by way of new destinations, new aircraft and innovative, customer-focused products.”

This successful business strategy, coupled with a continuing transformation of Dubai’s aviation infrastructure, suggests that Emirates and flydubai will soar to ever greater heights in the future with HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum firmly in the cockpit.

EK/Qantas alliance now includes New Zealand

25 July 2013

From August 14th The Qantas-Emirates partnership will be able to include destinations in New Zealand in their codeshare and revenue planning.

From that date airlines will begin to take bookings for its operations between Australian east coast cities and Auckland, Christchurch, Wellington and Queenstown. This will also see aligned fares, frequent flyer benefits and codeshare arrangements for passengers travelling on these routes.

“New Zealand was part of the Qantas-Emirates vision from the start and since receiving government approval in May our teams have been working hard towards switching the partnership on,” Qantas’ executive manager, international sales, Stephen Thompson said.

The new services will see the airlines sharing 130 services per week across the Tasman. Emirates’ trans-Tasman services will be operated by the Airbus A380 and Boeing 777, while Qantas’ services by a dedicated fleet of next generation Boeing 737-800s.

For  the first time Wellington and Queenstown will be available to Emirates customers as codeshares on Qantas flights.

Fair to say that Air New Zealand and Virgin Australia cannot be happy.

Thailand's latest geographically confused airline

22 July 2013

Asia Atlantic Airlines (Bangkok Suvarnabhumi) is the latest one airplane Thai airline to take to the skies with  a single B767-300(ER) HS-AAC, msn 25287, formerly with Ecuadorian carrier, AeroGal (2K, Quito Int'l).

The first flight appears to have been flown to Tokyo Narita on 19 July. Backed by Japanese travel firm, H.I.S, and Thai hotel operator, Baiyoke Group, Asia Atlantic claims it will initially be flying to Japan, Thailand, China, Korea, Hawaii, Guam, Indonesia and Russia, with "rapid expansion plans in the pipeline."

Daily flights are operated to Narita; these are charters and not available for pubic reservation. Direct competition in the market to Tokyo comes from Thai Airways (21 weekly frequencies), All Nippon Airways (14), Japan Airlines (14), Delta Air Lines (7) and United Airlines (7). Further 21 weekly frequencies are offered by All Nippon Airways, Japan Airlines and Thai Airways (7 each) to Tokyo Haneda.

The airline was originally to be called Asia Pacific Airlines. A name that was already taken by a cargo carrier. Hence the change to the geographically challenged Asia Atlantic.

Here are pictures of their first airplane and crew.

Boris is right - it is time to scrap Heathrow

15 July 2013

Heathrow is a disaster. It is old; there is no room to effectively expand. It limits the growth of the UK's air traffic business; it limits opportunities for British business. It is a third world airport in a first world city. All that saves it from being completely inoperable is the efficiency of the UK's air traffic controllers who make the best use of Heathrow's two runways and crowded terminal space.

Now Mayor of London Boris Johnson is set to unveil plans to build homes on Heathrow and build a new airport to the east of London.

He is right. But predictably he is opposed by Heathrow's chiefs who will unveil proposals for further runways.

Johnson will on Monday set out three options for a four-runway hub to the east of London, at the expense of Heathrow. His proposals are part of a submission to the Airports Commission, a body appointed by the government to draw up options for new runways.

Johnson proposes two new sites in the Thames estuary and an expanded Stansted, with a Norman Foster-designed project on the Isle of Grain in Kent thought to be his favoured plan.

At the same time, he will call for the closure or scaling down of Heathrow, claiming the land could sustain a thriving new London borough.

Heathrow and local councils have argued that building a new hub would force the airport out of business, causing substantial job losses in the area. Those jobs of course would not disappear for over a decade while the new airport is constructed; and those jobs will be replaced to the west of London by new developments arising from the old Heathrow with thousands of new homes and businesses in the heart of London's affluent western suburbs.

A Heathrow spokesman said: "It seems extraordinary that any mayor of London would propose forcibly buying and then closing Heathrow. The mayor's proposals would leave 114,000 people facing redundancy, cost taxpayers more and take longer to deliver than building on the strength we already have at Heathrow."

Heathrow will respond on Wednesday with a series of specific options for a third runway, none of which replicate the plans scrapped by the coalition in 2010.

One proposal is believed to be a new runway towards Stanwell Moor to the south-west of the existing airport, although the most realistic option is still to the north, where land was safeguarded for a third runway.

The village of Sipson, earmarked for demolition before the 2010 election under the third runway proposals, will apparently not be reprieved. It is understood the village features in at least one of the options being proposed.

Heathrow will also signal that a fourth runway should not be necessary for decades, in an attempt to head off Johnson's demands for a four-runway hub and to limit any public backlash from London residents threatened by noise from new flight paths.

Amsterdam already has six runways.

Meanwhile Gatwick will submit plans for its own second runway to the commission, arguing for a "constellation approach" to airport capacity around London. That runway would be operational around 2025 at the earliest. In this vision, Heathrow, Gatwick and an expanded Stansted would provide competition to each other on a more equal footing.

Birmingham airport believes that Britain's capacity needs can be met through a network of long-haul airports connected by the HS2 rail line.

Manchester Airports Group, which bought Stansted earlier this year, has yet to say whether it supports any of Johnson's or Gatwick's expansion plans for the single-runway Essex airport.

The commission will announce a shortlist of new runway options by the end of the year, with detailed studies to be carried out in 2014. It will set out its final recommendations after the general election in 2015.

Then there are public enquiries.

And eventually something or nothing is done.

Meanwhile London's other hub airport in Dubai will have expanded to 90 million passengers a year and be ready to move to a 160 million passengers per year five runway airport at Jebel Ali.

London is in real danger of being left behind and it needs a long term strategy not a short term band aid.

Emirates to Kiev in 2014

11 July 2013

Dubai’s Emirates Airline on Thursday unveiled new expansion plans in Eastern Europe, announcing its first service to the Ukraine.

Emirates will launch daily services to Kyiv Boryspil International Airport in the capital Kiev from January 16, 2014.

The flight, EK171, will be operated by an Airbus A340-500 with first, business and economy classes.

It will depart Dubai at 5.15pm, arriving in Kiev at 8.35pm. The return flight to Dubai leaves Kiev at 10.10pm, arriving into Dubai at 4.55am the following day.

America against democracy

10 July 2013 The Economist

Revelations in the wake of Edward Snowden's civil disobedience continue to roll in. The New York Times reports that the Federal Intelligence Surveillance Court, also known as the FISA court, "has quietly become almost a parallel Supreme Court, serving as the ultimate arbiter on surveillance issues and delivering opinions that will most likely shape intelligence practices for years to come..." How is the FISA court like a shadow Supreme Court? Its interpretation of the constitution is treated by the federal government as law. The Times reports:

In one of the court’s most important decisions, the judges have expanded the use in terrorism cases of a legal principle known as the “special needs” doctrine and carved out an exception to the Fourth Amendment’s requirement of a warrant for searches and seizures, the officials said.

Of course, there are important differences. None of the judges of the FISA court were vetted by Congress. They were appointed by a single unelected official: John Roberts, the chief justice of the Supreme Court. And then there's the fact that "the FISA court hears from only one side in the case—the government—and its findings are almost never made public." A court that is supreme, in the sense of having the final say, but where arguments are only ever submitted on behalf of the government, and whose judges are not subject to the approval of a democratic body, sounds a lot like the sort of thing authoritarian governments set up when they make a half-hearted attempt to create the appearance of the rule of law.

According to the Times, Geoffrey Stone, a law professor at the University of Chicago, "said he was troubled by the idea that the court is creating a significant body of law without hearing from anyone outside the government, forgoing the adversarial system that is a staple of the American justice system." I'm troubled, too.

Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal adds some meat to the story by reporting that "The National Security Agency’s ability to gather phone data on millions of Americans hinges on the secret redefinition of the word 'relevant'".

In classified orders starting in the mid-2000s, the court accepted that "relevant" could be broadened to permit an entire database of records on millions of people, in contrast to a more conservative interpretation widely applied in criminal cases, in which only some of those records would likely be allowed, according to people familiar with the ruling.

"Relevant" has long been a broad standard, but the way the court is interpreting it, to mean, in effect, "everything," is new, says Mark Eckenwiler, a senior counsel at Perkins Coie LLP who, until December, was the Justice Department's primary authority on federal criminal surveillance law.

Two senators on the Intelligence Committee, Ron Wyden (D., Ore.) and Mark Udall (D., Colo.), have argued repeatedly that there was a "secret interpretation" of the Patriot Act. The senators' offices tell the Journal that this new interpretation of the word "relevant" is what they meant.”

Think about that. Doesn't that suggest to you that Messrs Wyden and Udall were afraid they might be subject to some sort of censure or reprisal were they to share with the public specific details about the official interpretation of the law to which the public is subject? And those specific details were about the interpretation of "relevant"? Now that that cat's out of the bag, I guess we're in danger?

All this somehow got me thinking of the doctrine of "democracy promotion", which was developed under George W. Bush and maintained more or less by Barack Obama. The doctrine is generally presented as half-idealism, half-practicality. That all the people of the Earth, by dint of common humanity, are entitled to the protections of democracy is an inspiring principle. However, its foreign-policy implications are not really so clear. To those of us who are sceptical that America has the authority to intervene whenever and wherever there are thwarted democratic rights, the advocates of democracy-promotion offer a more businesslike proposition. It is said that authoritarianism, especially theocratic Islamic authoritarianism, breeds anti-American terrorism, and that swamp-draining democracy-promotion abroad is therefore a priority of American national security. If you don't wish to asphyxiate on poison gas in a subway, or lose your legs to detonating pressure-cookers at a road-race, it is in your interest to support American interventions on behalf of democracy across the globe. So the story goes.

However, the unstated story goes, it is equally important that American democracy not get out of hand. If you don't want your flight to La Guardia to end in a ball of fire, or your local federal building to be razed by a cataclysm of exploding fertiliser, you will need to countenance secret courts applying in secret its own secret interpretation of hastily drawn, barely debated emergency security measures, and to persecute with the full force of the world's dominant violent power any who dare afford a glimpse behind the veil.

You see, democracy here at home must be balanced against the requirements of security, and it is simply too dangerous to leave the question of this balance to the democratic public. Open deliberation over the appropriate balance would require saying something concrete about threats to public safety, and also about the means by which those threats might be checked. But revealing such information would only empower America's enemies and endanger American lives. Therefore, this is a discussion Americans can't afford to have. Therefore, the power to determine that this is a discussion the public cannot afford to have cannot reside in the democratic public. That power must reside elsewhere, with the best and brightest, with those who have surveyed the perils of the world and know what it takes to meet them. Those deep within the security apparatus, within the charmed circle, must therefore make the decision, on America's behalf, about how much democracy—about how much discussion about the limits of democracy, even—it is safe for Americans to have.

This decision will not be effective, however, if it is openly questioned. The point is that is not up for debate. It is crucial, then, that any attempt by those on the inside to reveal the real, secret rules governing American life be met with overwhelming, intimidating retaliation. In order to maintain a legitimising democratic imprimatur, it is of course important that a handful of elected officials be brought into the anteroom of the inner council, but it's important that they know barely more than that there is a significant risk that we will all perish if they, or the rest of us, know too much, and they must be made to feel that they dare not publicly speak what little they have been allowed know. Even senators. Even senators must fear to describe America's laws to America's citizens. This is, yes, democracy-suppression, but it is a vitally necessary arrangement. It keeps you and your adorable kids and even your cute pet dog alive.

Now, I don't believe I've heard anyone make this argument, no doubt because the logic of the argument cuts against it being made. Yet it seems similar reasoning must underpin the system of secret government that has emerged from the examination of Mr Snowden's leaks, and I cannot help but suspect that something along these lines has become the unspoken, unspeakable doctrine of Mr Obama's administration. Yet I remember when the Mr Obama announced this:

"My Administration is committed to creating an unprecedented level of openness in Government. We will work together to ensure the public trust and establish a system of transparency, public participation, and collaboration. Openness will strengthen our democracy and promote efficiency and effectiveness in Government.”

That would have been some real democracy-promotion, right here in the homeland. What happened? Is it naive to think Mr Obama really believed this stuff? I'll admit, with some embarrassment, that I'd thought he did believe it. But this "commitment" has been so thoroughly forsaken one is forced to consider whether it was ever sincere. It has been so thoroughly forsaken one wonders whether to laugh or cry. What kind of message are we sending about the viability these democratic ideals—about openness, transparency, public participation, public collaboration? How hollow must American exhortations to democracy sound to foreign ears? Mr Snowden may be responsible for having exposed this hypocrisy, for having betrayed the thug omerta at the heart of America's domestic democracy-suppression programme, but the hypocrisy is America's. I'd very much like to know what led Mr Obama to change his mind, to conclude that America is not after all safe for democracy, though I know he's not about to tell us. The matter is settled. It has been decided, and not by us. We can't handle the truth.

Emirates announces sixth daily flight to Bangkok

10 July 2013

Why open up new routes when you can make more money expanding services on existing highly profitable routes?

With that in mind from 27 October 2013 Emirates Airline will add a new afternoon service to Bangkok, departing Dubai at 1520 and arriving at Suvarnabhumi airport at 0020. The return service will leave Bangkok at 0155, getting back into Dubai International Airport at 0545. The new daily service will be operated using a three-class Boeing 777-200ER with 12 seats in first class, 42 in business class and 220 in economy.

From the same date, Emirates will also upgrade another of its Dubai-Bangkok flights (EK372) to the larger Airbus A380 aircraft.

“Emirates’ sixth daily service to Bangkok launches on the same day as the start of our second daily Airbus A380 service to the city, demonstrating the importance of Thailand to the airline,” said Barry Brown, Emirates’ divisional senior vice president of commercial operations for the region.

“Due to passenger demand, we have seen a steady increase in terms of services and capacity on our Southeast Asian routes. In addition to the Bangkok sixth daily, Emirates is also increasing its Hong Kong services to four daily from 27 October and will be launching a daily, non-stop service to Clark in the Philippines from 1 October,” he added.

The announcement of the latest increase comes just six months after Emirates added its fifth daily Bangkok flight; though that is still an old and rather unpleasant A330.

77 years

7 July 2013

77 years of grass court gloom on 7/7....and this picture which is in Monday's Times tells the story:

Asiana 777 accident at SFO

6 July 2013

Breaking news tonight of an Asiana Airlines accident on landing at SFO. Appears that there are 2 deaths and 61 injured. But with the plane landing short of the runway it is remarkable that there were not more casualties.

Also remarkable that passengers could just amble away from this accident walking with there carry on baggage. The airplane is now a burned out shell.

There is no sign of the no 1 engine. The tail-plane has been ripped of.

A fire clearly broke out but appears to have started after most of the passengers had evacuated.

A NOTAM indicates San Francisco runway 28L glideslope was declared out of service as of Jun 1, effective through Aug 22. In addition it appears that the PAPI was not functioning.

But the weather was clear with a light wind of just 7 knots.

No such thing as a good coup

4 July 2013

I doubt that Egyptians will see this as their independence day.

Egypt's army yesterday ousted a democratically elected government that had been in office for just one year.

The Americans do not want to call this a coup. And most of the GCC nations approve the army led change with the lonely exception of Qatar.

But may no mistake this was a traditional coup d’état.

Troops surrounded state broadcasting headquarters early in the day and, once the army commander had finished his televised announcement of the government’s demise, the plugs were pulled on the ruling party, silencing its television stations.

General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, the army chief of staff, replaced Mr Morsi, elected juts one year ago, and his Muslim Brotherhood with a transitional government. Making the announcement on tv he was flanked by the Sheikh of al-Azhar university, the leading Sunni Muslim authority; the Pope of Egypt’s sizeable Coptic minority; Mohamed ElBaradei, Nobel peace laureate and leader of Egypt’s liberals; and youthful activists who brought down the army-backed dictatorship of Hosni Mubarak in 2011, the high spring of the new Arab awakening.

Huge crowds in Tahrir Square erupted in joy every bit as spectacular as the way they greeted the toppling of Mr Mubarak. But it cannot bode well when those who profess to be liberals need the army bayonets to force their case. The joy may well be short-lived, because what really happened in Egypt was that it went back two years. With Morsi gone, the old regime is back where they want to be, pulling the levers of power. It is now only a matter of time before the loser of the last presidential election, Ahmed Shafiq comes back from exile.

Over the last two days an army that appeared to be retreating from politics after the departure of Hosni Mubarak in February 2011 has stepped back into the arena again, first by issuing an ultimatum to an elected president to obey it or resign, and then by going through with its threat and laying out a road map that deposes him and suspends the constitution.

In doing so the army rejected the results of elections that were widely deemed to be free and fair and set aside the country's basic law. The similarities o 2006 in Thailand are strong.

Blaming Morsi for not resurrecting the Egyptian economy was one excuse though there is no ready solution that provides enough jobs for tens of thousands of young people who are graduating every year, let alone for an older generation that is out of work. Morsi went along with the International Monetary Fund's plans for an end to subsidies on food and utility prices that would only create more austerity, but so did most of the established opposition leaders who are now clamouring for power. As for the failure of the tourism sector to revive, the main reason for the chaos and instability that put off outsiders rests with the constant street demonstrations.

Anyone who believe that the military's main objective is to preserve the new freedoms will soon be disappointed. From Chile in 1973 to Pakistan in 1999 (and several times before that) and Thailand in 2006, long is the history of military takeovers that were welcomed in their first hours and days but regretted in the years of despair that followed. F

General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has appointed the head of the supreme constitutional court as interim head of state. No one in Egypt knows who this man Adli Mansour is. But he will be the public face of a new army backed legislature.

Gen Sisi called for presidential and parliamentary elections and a panel to review the constitution, but no timelines were given.

Let us be clear, Mr Morsi failed to make good on the promise he made to represent all the factions that ousted Hosni Mubarak two years ago. When he offered concessions, such as a government of national unity and a neutral committee to rewrite the constitution, it was too late. Something as fundamental as a constitution should never have been rammed through, after half of the members of its constituent assembly had resigned and with the promise that it could be amended in the future. Mr Morsi had a valid argument when he said that the opposition refused to participate from the start. But he nevertheless should not have proceeded without them. He should have enforced the rule of law, especially against the police.

Even so, what took shape last night was more fundamental than any of the conflicts that led to it. To dispose of Egypt's first democratically elected president, to disenfranchise all those who participated in the free elections for the presidency and the parliament and the referendum for the constitution is another matter entirely. Each of these nascent institutions were castigated by foreign governments and human rights groups for falling below international standards. Mr Morsi was given lectures about how democracy is more than just the ballot box. But which standard is more important than the one which decrees that transfers of power can only be enacted peacefully and through the ballot box? That has just been trashed.

The spectacle presented by the first elected parliament after the fall of Mubarak – an Islamist-dominated assembly arguing about prayer times and obsessing over curtailing women’s rights – was a setback for democracy. Attempts to manipulate the judiciary by all sides – the generals, the Mubarak “deep state”, the liberals and the Brotherhood – were a setback for democracy.

By no means least, the manifest inability of secular, urban and modern Egyptians to organise their political representation was – and remains – a setback for democracy.

And now the biggest steback of all.

Elected governments are removed at the ballot box not at the point of a gun; and new elections and stable government look a long way off in Egypt.

Meanwhile the GCC countries, except Qatar, have welcomed the coup amid their own concerns about the Muslim Brotherhood and the USA has remarkable failed to call ths a coupe since the Egyptian military is largely US funded and trained.

Why the doors have slammed in Edward Snowden’s face

4 July 2013 Reuters

Edward Snowden is still holed up in the transit lounge of Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport. From almost every corner of the world has come the sound of doors slamming. The US wants the former US security contractor extradited home to face trial. The rest of the world – including, I suspect, his Russian hosts – see a story they would like to go away.

Mr Snowden has confirmed many prejudices about the use, and abuse, of American power. But the truth is we are sated with secrets. Not so long ago the disclosure of the nefarious surveillance activities of US intelligence agencies would have been met with international uproar. Now it produces a diplomatic ripple like that from a pebble thrown into a pond.

True, various European governments have complained about the US habit of spying on its allies. Predictably enough, France has led the field, warning that the disclosures could wreck transatlantic trade talks. The European Commission has lodged a protest – although one suspects it may be thrilled that Washington thinks it important enough to bug its fax machines.

None of the Europeans will take in Mr Snowden. Those prone to Orwellian nightmares profess themselves horrified by the revelations. Just about everyone else already knew that the US bugs just about everyone. Why pick a fight with Washington over a self-styled whistleblower? True, Bolivia is up in arms after this week’s enforced diversion of its president’s flight from Moscow. But even Ecuador, which hosts WikiLeaks’ Julian Assange in its London embassy, seems reluctant to welcome Mr Snowden.

For the US, mass surveillance is a supply-driven activity. The sole superpower has to do something with its vast national intelligence complex and unmatched electronic snooping technology. If the National Security Agency can scoop up conversations between François Hollande and Angela Merkel along with those of Taliban commanders, why not?

Nor is the US alone in checking up on friends. Europeans are nervous about bugging the Americans but they take their chances when they arise. They certainly spy on each other. The French steal the commercial secrets of the Germans; the British monitor Commonwealth partners such as South Africa and India. The Israelis bug everyone.

As for the Chinese and the Russians, while they have enjoyed America’s discomfort, they are hardly novices when it comes to trawling through cyber space.

There are other reasons for the muted reaction. One is that citizens have become careless about their privacy. Societies in which individuals willingly hand over vast amounts of their own, often intimate, data to internet providers, social media sites and commercial enterprises are less concerned when governments listen in.

There are also suspicions about the motives of self-described whistleblowers. Mr Assange comes across more egomaniac than disinterested seeker of truth. Mr Snowden’s choice of authoritarian refuges does not speak to a natural reverence for the rule of law.

Publics are conscious that digital networks provide the supply routes for cross-border terrorism. If those intent on bringing down civilian aircraft or setting off bombs in crowded cities can plot their atrocities over the web, it seems reasonable enough that intelligence agencies should be able to listen in – just as they once bugged telephones and opened letters. The reason they hoover up so much data is because, well, there is so much of it.

There is something to all these points. It would be a great pity, however, if Mr Snowden’s central insight was lost to the brouhaha about his motives and his present predicament.

The lesson is surely that democratic accountability and oversight of the intelligence agencies have been left behind by fear of jihadi terrorism and advances in digital innovation. It is far from evident that the US Congress – or for that matter the legislatures in other mature democracies – have kept up with the capabilities and operations of the secret world of surveillance. Nor have citizens and politicians properly understood how data gathered by commercial enterprises can be used by the US government.

In this respect, whatever his motives, Mr Snowden has done the rest of us a service.

In major shock Dubai will build something small

4 July 2013

Dubai’s ruler Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum has approved a number of new projects proposed by the Dubai Municipality, including a ‘Mini World Park’.

The development will be designed to showcase replicas of famous monuments from across the world. The location and financial details were not disclosed.

Some of the displays expected include miniature versions of the Burj Khalifa, Burj Al Arab, Empire State Building, Carlton Tower, CN Tower and the Petronas Towers.

Historical landmarks such as Egypt’s pyramids, the Great Wall of China, Jordan’s Petra and the Roman Colosseum will also be featured, and the project will also contain models of natural monuments such as the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, Raouche Rock from Lebanon, and the Niagara Falls, among others.

Apart from the Mini World Park, another project approved by Sheikh Mohammed is a new maritime museum, which will primarily host aquatic species.

The museum, to be built in the shape of a snail, will feature views of the Ras Al Khor Sanctuary and is estimated to cost Dhs35 million.

The municipality is also planning to construct a central library in Dubai.

Called the Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum library, it will be designed in the form of book bearer or an open book. Spread across 50,000 sq metres, the building, which includes seven levels, will display one million books in addition to 1.2 million books in storage.

Long sentences in the UAE dissent trial

3 July 2013

More than 65 people accused of plotting an Islamist coup in the United Arab Emirates have been handed prison sentences – some of up to 15 years – in a mass trial that reflected the widening concerns about dissent and anti-government action across the Gulf region.

Rights groups have accused their concern at the judicial process that saw 94 people on trial, including teachers, lawyers and even the cousin of one of the UAE's rulers.

The Gulf News reports extensively on the trial and verdict; and outlines plots to overthrow the UAE's government through the activities of an Islamic front organisation accused of having links to the Muslim Brotherhood, Al Islah.

It is hard, as a foreigner, to have an opinion, on what clearly is an issue of concern to Emiratis. The only reporting of substance has been generated through the national newswire of the UAE, WAM.

Without any alternative voice and with no investigative reporting it is hard to comment on the detail of the case.

In the case against the 94 defendants, prosecutors claimed the al-Islah group was influenced by Muslim Brotherhood ideology to oppose the western-oriented system in the UAE.

The defendants rejected the claims, saying the group only supported Islamic viewpoints and carried out necessary social outreach in poorer areas of the country beyond the skylines of Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

Al-Islah has operated openly for decades in the UAE under the tacit agreement that members would not get involved in political affairs.

A few links might give more detail.

UAE94 trial was 'just and fair' - Human Rights Assoc

UAE security trial: Verdict described as ‘strictly fair’

UAE: Grossly unfair trial of government critics

Amsterdam - London's best airport

2 July 2013

For many travelers Amsterdam airport is a favorite transit hub. And it is easy to see why.

Airside six runways eliminate anything but the worst weather delays.

Landside the airport is a wondrous mix of shopping mall, rail station, social gathering place and transport hub.

Shuttle buses to the airport hotels are free - take that Heathrow with your gbp4 charge.

The train to Amsterdam city centre is Euro3.80. The Gatwick and Heathrow expresses are both close to gbp20.

Now Dutch aviation chiefs have brazenly launched a fresh campaign to promote Schiphol as a hub airport for Britain.

They are even said to have cheekily nicknamed one of the six runways at the Amsterdam airport “Heathrow’s third runway”.

Amsterdam boasts more than 100 daily flights from the UK to Schiphol, with connections to more than 275 destinations around the globe. WIth flights into all the major UK airports as well as minors such as Norwich and Cambridge it is easy to see why passengers are happy to fly through Amsterdam rather than having to haul their way through any of London's airports.

Indeed the major competition to Amsterdam is from other hubs such as Frankfurt or even from Dubai based upon Emirates flights from UK regional airports.

The Schiphol Group president Jos Nijhuis said: “Each year we serve seven million passengers to and from Britain. In September UK business travellers voted us best European airport for the 23rd time. We are proud to be the UK’s preferred non-British airport.”

Amsterdam serves 23 destinations in Britain, compared with Gatwick’s 12 and Heathrow’s seven.

Of course Amsterdam has the advantage of a huge amount of green space around its airport which serves a city with a population of around a million compared to London's 10 million.

The only downside at Amsterdam; the cattle pens used to herd Easyjet passengers to their flights. Awful.

Emirates launches Conakry

3 July 2013

Emirates Airline has announced plans to introduce a linked service to Conakry, the capital city of Guinea, from October 27.

The linking of Conakry to the four times weekly Dubai to Dakar service will provide new opportunities for business and leisure travelers in Guinea to connect to the airline's worldwide network through its Dubai hub.

Conakry is the largest city of Guinea in West Africa and is situated on the Atlantic Ocean and serves as the economic, financial and cultural centre of the country with an estimated population of 1.5 million people.

Guinea is a developing economy with a strong mining sector.

The Dubai to Dakar route was serviced by an A330-200 aircraft, but since the end of March a slightly larger A340-300 was introduced onto the route, ahead of the October launch of the Conakry link.

The Dakar/Conakry flight mirrors the existing Accra/Abidjan flight and is a useful means of adding passenger and cargo revenues to an existing service.