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When U.S. and Israeli strikes against Iran on February 28 set off retaliatory missile and drone attacks across the Gulf and closed airspace throughout much of the region, aviation medical and security services provider MedAire evacuated its Dubai office. Seven months later, the company is not only back in the office but widening its regional footprint.
When MedAire evacuated its Dubai office, it shifted the operation as its specialists remained alongside clients. “Business aviation is essential to the Middle East’s connectivity, especially when routes, schedules, and assumptions are changing by the hour,” said Peter Tuggey, MedAire’s managing director of aviation for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and Asia-Pacific.
The company now ranks the region among its busiest. “The Middle East has become one of MedAire’s most active and important regions, and the needs of aviation clients here are growing in both scale and complexity,” said Reely Rajan, MedAire’s director for India, the Middle East, and Africa. “We have expanded our footprint beyond Dubai into Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and India so that more of our expertise sits closer to the people and operations it supports.”
Founded in 1985, MedAire connects cabin crews and business aviation teams with medical experts on the ground to help in emergencies. More than 6,800 business and private aircraft rely on its services to protect passengers and crew, Medaire said.
Meanwhile, the head of the Middle East & North Africa Business Aviation Association (MEBAA) confirmed that the group’s biennial show will open as planned in Dubai in December.
MEBAA founding and executive chairman Ali Alnaqbi sees the same resilience across the wider market. He said demand for business aviation in the region remains robust, fueled by strong economic growth, rising private wealth, and the continued expansion of key hubs in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar.
Responding to a question from AIN, Alnaqbi said that the MEBAA Show, set for December 8 to 10 at Dubai World Central, will go ahead as planned, despite uncertainty.
“How many times have we had a show that didn’t face a challenge?” he asked. “In this region, we thrive on challenges. The UAE was the first country to recover after Covid. We have already recovered from the February 28 issues that happened in the region. I assure you that we’re going to proceed with the MEBAA show. When you have a government like ours, you don’t have to worry.”