AIG has signed a tenancy agreement with Space Airlines. The new low-cost carrier will establish its presence at the airport through an office in Terminal 1, in addition to a maintenance shop in the northern apron, starting from 1st December 2009.
Curtis Grad, Chief Executive Officer of Airport International Group commented on this agreement saying, "We are pleased to be signing this agreement with Space Airlines which will further support our ongoing efforts to further develop and diversify air service at QAIA. We look forward to building a long-term and prosperous relationship with Space Airlines."
On his part, Captain Basil Obeidat, Chief Executive Officer of Space Airlines said, "Space Airlines is proud to be signing an agreement with AIG, resulting in the launch of our new services from QAIA, an airport that is witnessing significant growth and tangible increase in traffic. In addition, the capital Amman provides the ideal backdrop, fast becoming a hub and major destination for passengers and airlines from around the world."
Space Airlines will begin its services with charter flights to tourist destinations in Turkey, Egypt, Russia and Bulgaria. The new airline will receive its first aircraft (Boeing 737-400) by the end of the year and commence operations in January 2010.
The US750 million rehabilitation and expansion works at QAIA are well underway, including construction of a new state-of-the-art 100,000 square meter passenger terminal. AIG, under the terms of a 25-year concession agreement with the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is responsible for the operation of the airport, the rehabilitation of existing facilities and the construction of the new terminal.
AIG is a Jordanian company with private shareholding by Invest AD (Abu Dhabi, UAE), Noor Financial Investment Company (Kuwait), Edgo Group (Jordan), Joannou & Paraskevaides (Overseas) Limited (Cyprus), J&P-Avax (Greece) and Aéroports de Paris Management (France).
