Gama Aviation offers Category Zero handling at Sharjah airport

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Global business aviation services company Gama Aviation plc now offers ‘Category Zero’ handling for its fixed based operations (FBO) at Sharjah International Airport. New handling rates have been introduced to encourage the region’s light aircraft users to use Gama’s facilities at the airport. According to the company, there are some 128 light aircraft in the Middle East, accounting for 16 percent of the region’s overall business fleet.

Gama cut basic handling rates at Sharjah by 20 percent last summer, following a global review of its operations, making the FBO highly competitive for Middle Eastern customers. With an estimated 792 business aircraft based in the Middle East, the company expects the business aviation sector to continue to develop and has made the region one of its global focus areas.

In February, Gama Aviation received approvals to build a US$ 8 million (AED 29m) maintenance hangar allowing it to expand the capacity of its Sharjah-based managed fleet by an additional three or four aircraft. Overall, Gama is expecting to invest about US$ 15 million (AED 55m) in its Sharjah expansion.

According to the company, Gama Aviation recently received UAE General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) and European Aviation Safety Agency approvals allowing its engineers to provide line maintenance support for a wide range of business aircraft, including the Beechcraft King Air, Bombardier Challenger, Bombardier Global, Embraer Legacy , Gulfstream and Boeing Business Jets.

Gama Aviation began handling all business aviation services at Sharjah International Airport in early 2012 via a partnership with Sharjah Airport Authority and opened its own private aviation terminal in 2014. Investors in the Sharjah facility include Sharjah-headquartered Crescent Enterprises, Growthgate Capital and Sharjah’s Department of Civil Aviation.

Sharjah International Airport handled 10 million passengers during 2015, showing a 5.5 percent increase compared with passenger numbers in 2014.

Source: Gama Aviation