Sometimes, I find the need to remind myself why I am taking all this time and effort to continue to develop this company. Success, believe it or not, is not the only thing fueling this passion. To be honest, it’s a lot more than an airline, or concept, to me: it’s my life.

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Arabian Airlines has been something that I have been working on for many, many years. Eight years on, I still find myself working dilligently to make this dream a reality - and a reality it shall be. It’s not just about being the best - it’s about building a community that prides itself on tolerance, innovation, and dedication. Arabian is much, much more than just a way in which people get from point A to point B - there’s so much in between that one must not let themselves become lost in the operational nuisances of the aviation industry. I’ll tell you what I mean.

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Arabian Airlines is what I envision to be a “responsible corporation.” That means more than just ensuring internal profits and stable operations - it means investing in the communities that continue to bring Arabian Airlines buisness, and most importantly, meaning. Anyone who has visited the Middle East over the years knows what I mean - there is so much opportunity, and a need for investment. Despite the continued demonization of corporations throughout the world, Arabian is meant to give more than it takes - we want to make the communities that surround our operations benefit from our business. While there may be monetary currency, we believe in human currency.

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To sum it up (and indeed this is a rather short post given tradition), it is about showing the world that we truly care about where we operate. The people of the Middle East, and the communities in which we interact with, are more than just potential business partners - they are our friends, and the future. Arabian Airlines is not just a company for today, but it is a company for tomorrow - and I would not have it any other way.

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- Mahmoud Fadli

It almost brings a tear to my eye to think about all the hard work we’ve all put in to Arabian, and the amount of pride I have knowing that my staff, friends, and family have supported me and Arabian through all the hard times we’ve endured.

I open my heart, and Arabian, to the public, and the press release below says it all. May Arabian has smooth skies, clear skies, and success, ahead of it.

After a long, two-year hiatus, Arabian Airlines reopens its doors to the public.

After two years of constant redevelopment following the catastrophic intermation server and website failure that led the airline to shut down its online operations, Arabian Airlines has announced that it has reopened its doors in what it calls “Phase one” of relaunch.

Arabian Airlines CEO Mahmoud Fadli explained. “Arabian has been working very hard to get to this day where we can say, with confidence, that we have opened our doors and are here to stay. We have taken considerable time and effort even in the most basic of things to ensure that all is up to the standards that we have come to appreciate for Arabian… and this is simply phase one of our relaunch process, which includes the unveiling of our website and fleet, along with a slight preview of what the future holds for Arabian.”

Though the website may be considered ‘basic’ by some, airline CEO Mahmoud Fadli told reporters that “they shouldn’t worry about that… there’s more to come.”

Phases of Relaunch

The airline announced that its relaunch will be conducted in four phases, with the details of the last two phases not yet released.

Phase one will entail the launching of the first version of the website and the “in transition fleet.”

The website’s features will simply be dubbed as version 1, with version 2 entailing more advanced interface options and operations systems that have yet to be announced by the airline’s management. This phase will be followed by a phase 1 transition phase, which will be marked by the release of Arabian’s temporary ACARS system dubbed “kneeboard,” as well as their in depth pilot’s handbook.

The “in transition fleet” will include aircraft in three schemes, the Arabian Classic Scheme, the transitional title scheme, and the new scheme, which has been implemented in secret six months ago on a few selected aircraft. Fadli further went on to say that pilots and enthusiasts alike should “be on the lookout” for many “surprises” within the fleet, including special schemes and scheme variations.

Phase Two

Arabian’s “Phase Two” of their long awaited launch will include the release of information regarding their long await ACARS program, which was secretly funded by and developed by members of Arabian’s senior staff and hired developers.

In addition to that, pilots would be able to expect a more advanced interface system built from the ground up, integrated to the current Arabian Airlines operations systems.

When questioned about ‘phase two,’ Fadli told reporters that if he were to “spill the beans about what’s to come, there wouldn’t be any need for a good Public Relations department,” leaving many reporters and observers in the room chuckling at the light hearted stab at questioning.

The Launch

Despite the technical details of this launch, airline CEO Mahmoud Fadli told reporters that “this was a profound time in the life of Arabian, and there are many new features and surprises that can be found on our website… and we invite all to join and begin flying for Arabian Airlines.”

Over the next few days the airline will continue to work on small upgrades throughout the site as it is further improved to accommodate for the expected surge in operations.

Founded in 2001, Arabian Airlines is one of the longest lasting Middle Eastern virtual airlines in the entire industry. The airline, having worked over a year, from the ground up, on this new system, has high hopes for the future, one that will hopefully bring about a newer standard for Middle Eastern Virtual Aviation, and Virtual Aviation as a whole.

Credits & A statement from the CEO

“This moment is one that we’ve all waited for, and one that I’ve looked forward to for over two years. We’ve gone from an idea, a concept, to a full fledged operation, and I couldn’t have done it alone.

“I’d like to take the time to thank our brilliant webmaster, Mr. James Norman for his hard and long work on out website, and our Assistant Webmaster, Ivan Kovacevic for his constant support and advice during the development process.

“I’d also like to take the time to thank our new Chief Operations Officer, Luke Harvest, to his heartfelt dedication to the airline, and his hard work in redeveloping our timetables and operation’s handbook.

“Mr. Brian T. Brooks, our CFO who has been with the airline for over 5 and a half years.

“Folks like Eisa Emami, Amr AbuShamat, Aly Dessouki, Brandon McKewon, Mr. Dennis Kirpitchenko, and Brandon Acton-Bond, who have given so much for this airline and have brought us to the point that we have reached; without any of these people, Arabian would not be here.

“It is with this in mind that I would like to take the time to welcome you to Arabian Airlines, and I truly hope you enjoy your time with us. Asalaamoualaikum, and Ahlan Wa Sahlan. Welcome aboard.”

- Mahmoud A. Fadli, Airline Founder, President, & CEO.
(Translation of Arabic parts: May peace be upon you, and may we extend many welcomes upon you.)

Please visit http://www.ArabianVA.com.

We’re close, very close. The launch should be any day now… yes, that’s right, any day now. We’re fixing up the final bugs on the site and getting ready. It’s coming folks… oh yes, it’s coming.

Soon, Arabian will be in the skies, and in business.

That’s right… the new blog. Right here, all in one place. A bit better eh? Everyone here can get a blog and section, so whichever perspective you want, you get, right here.

Comment, please, and enjoy!

When coders ditch you there is a sense of hopelessness; a sense of being ripped off and lied to, pushed into a corner where the only options you have are the amount of dollar bills in your wallet and the motivation to make this happen at any cost.

And that’s the position I’m in right now. What do I do? Frankly, it’s a no brainer. Arabian is happening, but the problem now is finding someone generous to help us. With a budget of 250 dollars, the work is literally charity, and whoever is to hep us would have to believe in the goal of Arabian, and in its potential to be successful. It’s been a long five year road… and the road gets longer, more complicated, and stressful, but isn’t that part of running a business, virtual or not? There are always stresses, always complications along the road that, in the moment, make you feel helpless, hopeless, and silly.

So… finding someone. That’s a good place to start. Problem is: everyone’s busy, and the only thing that many people believe in is money. The most money, the more motivation. The less money, the harder they laugh. And it’s tough not being taken seriously, especially since, now that I think about it, I’ve been so gullible to actually believe people when they said they’d meet a deadline, especially in the web design and coding industry. Unless you’re paying thousands of dollars, don’t expect someone to meet your deadline; and even if you’re paying thousands of dollars, deadlines aren’t always met.

But either way, at the end of the day, the only thing that matters is your ability to keep your head up, move forward, and find solutions to every problem that comes up. All I know is that when this airline gets set up, we will be big, we will be the best, and we will represent our people, our region, and our love for aviation as best as we can. At the end of the day, we are Arabian.

It happens every now and then; the miscommunication of units between two coordinating forces. We saw it missions to space where the units accepted were metric and the units given were, well, English, resulting in the loss of a multi-million dollar spacecraft.

And now, it has happened to Arabian; the website is in PHP and the script itself is in ASP, meaning that we have a Russian linguist trying to read Chinese and translate it into English. In other words, we have a dilemma. Our coder is currently looking at the website script to see if he can translate it into ASP, and chances are we will (we have faith in him); but the point of the matter is that for future reference, it would be a good idea to get a clear idea of what your script entails and if it’s in PHP or not.

But either way, it’s yet another obstacle that Arabian will overcome; after all, the company has had its (un)fair share of obstacles over the past five years, and this shouldn’t be a problem. As a result of this, we might be seeing operations at the end of January, which isn’t bad at all. All aircraft are flying without an operations system, which means that everything is done by hand. Which reminds me, I have to send bonuses to our poor hub managers and operations personnel; I’m sure it’s a tough job keeping things running as they are now.

Yet while I pull my hair out and try and coordinate Arabian and get our website issue resolved, I’d like to make it clear that Arabian isn’t going anywhere. We’ve spent five years working up to this point; we’ve had webmasters go AWOL on us before and have dealt with airlines copying our slogans, logo styles, etc.; we’ve had much worse, and this will only mean that our opening will be the more exciting and memorable for all those involved.

It seems that the whole theme of cultural pride and representation has been a vagrant part of the airline mindset. After all, who wouldn’t want to represent the region they come from in the most positive light? It’s natural.

Throughout my time at Arabian I’ve seen many airlines use some of our concepts, ideas and even materials, directly copying them into their operations and claiming it to be their own. Usually such things get on my nerves, but I’ve been thinking differently lately. The world grows off itself; each person learns from the ideas and mistakes of another; it’s a connected system in which most contribute and all benefit. Though lately some airlines have had suspicious similarities with Arabian, it’s a good idea to remember that things could also be pure cooincidience, something CEOs forget routinely.

I remember many-a-times, at [un-named] flight simulation forums, where airline CEOs accuse one another of copying, if not stealing, work from one another, and in many cases it is obvious that they did, and in many, it is the accuser that is indeed the ‘copy-cat.’ But the point of the matter is this: if you come up with an idea, you can come up with another. Thus let’em copy.

We at Arabian worked hard for over five years to reach the point we are now, and though we are not operational, we still feel as if we are a part of this community, and have contributed at least something positive; our motto of professionalism, culture and a pride and dignity in our region has reached far and wide into the community, and if anything that motto has literally been carried over to other airlines.

And as a message to all airline CEOs, I say this: motivation is one thing, but imitation is flattery; and your job as a CEO is not to flatter the competition, but to inspire them so that they can begin to flatter you. In other words, don’t get offended when another airline copies your work, be flattered; that doesn’t mean you let them, but it will at least allow you the ability to write up a letter to them nicely… professionally, and with less profanity.