Bahrain’s loss-making flag carrier Gulf Air, struggling against competition from other regional carriers, has embarked on a sweeping restructuring plan that has annoyed unions over heavy job cuts.
The company said this week it had sacked 15 percent of its staff and closed four more routes in January as it pressed ahead with a restructuring plan that it launched a month earlier.
The carrier, one of the Gulf region’s oldest airlines, has been struggling to cut losses mounted by stiff competition from fast growers like Dubai’s Emirates, Abu Dhabi’s Etihad and Qatar Airways, as well as rapidly expanding budget airlines like flydubai and Air Arabia.
It has also been hit by the political and security uncertainty that took a heavy toll on the economy due to protests that erupted in February 2011, and continue despite a deadly crackdown in March of the same year.
Gulf Air was established in 1974, Abu Dhabi, Oman and Qatar partnering with Bahrain. By the early 1990s, it had become the largest Middle East carrier.
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