Kuwait Airways facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Kuwait Airways
الخطوط الجوية الكويتية
al-Khuṭūṭ al-Jawiyyah al-Kuwaītiyyah

Founded	1953; 72 years ago (1953) (as Kuwait National Airways)
Commenced operations	16 March 1954; 71 years ago (1954-03-16)
Hubs	Kuwait International Airport
Frequent-flyer program	Oasis Club
Fleet size	32
Destinations	52
Parent company	Kuwait Airways Corporation (KAC)
Headquarters	Al Farwaniyah Governorate, Kuwait
Key people	Abdulmohsen Salem Alfagaan (Chairman & CEO)

Kuwait Airways (Arabic: الخطوط الجوية الكويتية, al-Ḫuṭūṭ al-Jawiyyah al-Kuwaītiyyah) is the main airline of Kuwait. Its main office is located at Kuwait International Airport in Al Farwaniyah Governorate. The airline flies to many international places across the Middle East, Indian subcontinent, Europe, Southeast Asia, and North America. All its flights start from its main base at Kuwait International Airport.

History

Kuwait National Airways Douglas DC-3 in 1955

Kuwait Airways started in 1953 as Kuwait National Airways. A group of Kuwaiti business people created it. The government owned half of the company from the start.

In 1954, the airline began flying. It used two Dakota planes. In its first year, it carried almost 9,000 passengers.

In July 1955, the airline changed its name to Kuwait Airways. By April 1959, it took over British International Airlines, which had helped manage its early operations.

Kuwait Airways De Havilland DH.106 Comet 4C at London Heathrow Airport in 1964

In 1962, Kuwait Airways was the first foreign airline to order the Hawker Siddeley Trident plane. It also ordered a Comet 4C. The airline received its first Comet in January 1963.

In June 1963, the Kuwaiti government took full ownership of the airline. In March 1964, Kuwait Airways started flying to London, its first European destination. A month later, it joined with another airline called Trans Arabia Airways.

A Kuwait Airways Trident at London Heathrow in 1974

By April 1965, Kuwait Airways flew to many cities. These included Baghdad, Beirut, Mumbai, Cairo, Frankfurt, and Paris. Its fleet included Comet 4Cs, DC-6Bs, and Viscount 700s.

The airline made its first profit in 1968. It earned about £910,000. In November 1967, it ordered three Boeing 707-320C planes.

A Kuwait Airways Boeing 707-320C approaching London Heathrow Airport in 1978.

By May 1973, the airline had five Boeing 707-320C planes. It also started flights to Colombo that year. In 1975, it bought two more Boeing 707-320Cs.

Kuwait Airways ordered its first Boeing 737 in 1975. In 1979, it also ordered three Boeing 727 planes.

A Kuwait Airways Airbus A310-300 approaching Prague Ruzyne Airport in 2004

By July 1980, the airline had a fleet of eight Boeing 707-320Cs, one Boeing 737-200, and three Boeing 747-200Bs. It also ordered six Airbus A310-200 planes. These new planes were meant to replace the Boeing 707s.

In 1992, Kuwait Airways helped start Jet Airways in India. It owned 20% of the company. However, a law later stopped foreign airlines from owning parts of Indian airlines. So, Kuwait Airways sold its share for $4 million.

A Kuwait Airways Airbus A340-300 taking off from Charles de Gaulle Airport in 2014.

In July 1996, Kuwait Airways ordered two Boeing 777-200 planes. This made it the 22nd airline in the world to order this type of aircraft. The first Boeing 777-200 arrived in early 1998.

In October 2007, the airline's new CEO said that Kuwait Airways should become a private company. He believed this would help it compete better and update its fleet.

Flights to Iraq started again in November 2013. Kuwait Airways had stopped flying there in 1990 after the invasion of Kuwait. The airline also restarted flights to Munich and Istanbul-Atatürk in July 2015. In October 2015, Bangalore was added to its network.

Airline's relationship with Israeli passengers

Kuwait Airways faced issues for not selling tickets to people with Israeli passports. This happened for flights from New York to London in 2013 and 2014.

The U.S. Department of Transportation investigated this. In October 2015, they told Kuwait Airways to stop refusing to carry Israeli citizens on flights between the U.S. and other countries where they could get off the plane. The department said Kuwait Airways was following a boycott against Israel.

Kuwait Airways said it was following Kuwaiti law. This law prevents the company from dealing with people or groups in Israel, or with Israeli citizenship.

To solve the problem, Kuwait Airways decided to stop its flights between New York and London in December 2015. A similar case happened in Germany in 2017. A German court decided that the airline could refuse passengers with Israeli passports if they had a layover in Kuwait.

Corporate affairs and identity

Ownership

As of 2023, the government of Kuwait fully owns Kuwait Airways.

Privatisation plans

Plans to make Kuwait Airways a private company began in the mid-1990s. This was after the Gulf War, when the airline lost a lot of its assets. In 2004, the company became a corporation.

In 2008, the government approved a plan to sell parts of the airline. They planned to sell 35% to a major investor and 40% to the public. The government would keep the remaining 25%.

In 2011, experts valued the airline at $805 million. However, the plan was put on hold. The committee suggested the airline should reorganize first. In January 2013, a law for the privatization of Kuwait Airways was passed.

Key people

As of November 2023, Abdulmohsen Salem Alfagaan is the chairman of Kuwait Airways.

Headquarters

The main office of Kuwait Airways is at Kuwait International Airport in Al Farwaniyah Governorate, Kuwait. This large office building is 42,000 square meters. It was built between 1992 and 1996.

Subsidiaries and alliances

Kuwait Airways has several smaller companies that are also going through a process to become private.

• Kuwait Aviation Services Co. (KASCO)
• Automated Systems Co. (ASC), which helps with flight booking systems.
• ALAFCO

Kuwait Airways also worked with other airlines. This helped them keep flying during the 1990 Gulf War.

• Shorouk Air (no longer flying)
• Jet Airways (India, currently not flying)
• Trans World Airlines (started in 1999)

Livery

Kuwait Airways A320neo in the new livery in 2020

In October 2016, the airline changed its look. It updated its bird logo and colors.

Destinations

Kuwait Airways is based at Kuwait International Airport. As of August 2023, the airline flies 65 routes to 63 different places.

Codeshare agreements

Kuwait Airways shares flights with these airlines:

• Aegean Airlines
• Air Europa
• Etihad Airways
• Ethiopian Airlines
• ITA Airways
• Middle East Airlines
• Oman Air
• SriLankan Airlines
• Turkish Airlines

Interline agreements

Kuwait Airways has agreements with these airlines to help passengers connect flights:

Fleet

Current fleet

A Kuwait Airways Airbus A320-200 at Dubai International Airport in 2014

A Kuwait Airways Airbus A330-200 approaching Frankfurt Airport in 2016

A Kuwait Airways Boeing 777 at Kuwait International Airport in 2020

A Boeing 747-400 used by the Emir of Kuwait, sometimes on regular flights.

As of January 2023, the Kuwait Airways fleet includes these aircraft:

Kuwait Airways also operates planes for the government of Kuwait. These planes have a special livery with "State of Kuwait" titles.

Former fleet

Recent developments

A Kuwait Airways Airbus A330-800neo. The airline received two of these planes in October 2020.

In October 2013, Kuwait Airways had one of the oldest fleets in the Middle East. The average age of its planes was 20 years. The airline showed its maintenance facilities to prove its planes were well-kept.

In December 2013, the airline agreed to buy 15 A320neos and 10 A350-900s. These planes would arrive between 2019 and 2022. The deal also included leasing seven A320s and five A330-200s until the new ones arrived.

In February 2014, the order for the A350-900s and A320neos was confirmed. It was worth $4.4 billion. In November 2014, Kuwait Airways announced plans to buy 10 Boeing 777-300ERs. This order was finalized in December 2014 for $3.3 billion.

By March 2015, Kuwait Airways had received four leased Airbus A320s. This was the first fleet upgrade in 17 years. In June 2015, the airline received its first Airbus A330 plane.

After changing its brand in October 2016, Kuwait Airways received its first Boeing 777-300ER in December 2016. This was the first new plane the airline fully owned in almost 20 years. The Airbus A340-300, which started flying in 1995, was retired in 2017.

In October 2018, Kuwait Airways changed its order with Airbus. It reduced its order for A350-900s to five planes. It also ordered eight Airbus A330-800s. The first two Airbus A330-800s arrived in October 2020.

In August 2019, the chairman of Kuwait Airways said the airline plans to spend $2.5 billion on new planes. These planes are expected to be delivered by 2026.

Services

Kuwait Airways is one of the few airlines that does not serve alcoholic drinks on its flights.

Incidents and accidents

• On June 30, 1966, Kuwait Airways Flight 032 crashed short of the runway in Kuwait City. No one died, but the plane was badly damaged.
• On December 3, 1984, Kuwait Airways Flight 221 was hijacked. Four hijackers took the plane to Tehran.
• On April 5, 1988, Kuwait Airways Flight 422 was hijacked. The hijackers forced the plane to land in different places. This hijacking lasted 16 days. Two passengers died during this event.
• In August 1990, during the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, several Kuwait Airways planes were taken by Iraqi troops.
• On May 6, 2019, an Indian technician working for Kuwait Airways died while moving a Boeing 777-300ER plane. No one else was on board.

See also

In Spanish: Kuwait Airways para niños

• Transport in Kuwait