Embraer has published a report that highlights the “significant opportunities to enhance intra-regional air connectivity across the Middle East.” Titled “Middle East’s Next Frontier: The Untapped Connectivity Potential,” the report focuses on how small narrowbody aircraft such as Embraer’s E-Jets can drive airline growth, profitability, and network resilience in a region that is one of the world’s fastest-growing.
The number of available seat kilometers (ASKs) in the Middle East on intra-regional routes—at 22%—remain much lower than in Europe (52%) and North America (64%). According to the report, instead of adding smaller aircraft to accommodate increased demand, Middle East airlines tend to move to larger narrowbody aircraft in an effort to reduce costs. But this isn’t adding to the regional connectivity capacity. “In fact, the number of origin-and-destination (O&D) city pairs served with direct flights has stagnated over the past 15 years, as large aircraft are not optimally sized for many intra-regional routes.”
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