Israel Aerospace, Etihad to Open Aircraft Conversion Site in Abu Dhabi

Visitors watch a demonstration at the Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) booth in the IMDEX Asia maritime defense exhibition in Singapore May 19, 2015. (Reuters)
Visitors watch a demonstration at the Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) booth in the IMDEX Asia maritime defense exhibition in Singapore May 19, 2015. (Reuters)
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Israel Aerospace, Etihad to Open Aircraft Conversion Site in Abu Dhabi

Visitors watch a demonstration at the Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) booth in the IMDEX Asia maritime defense exhibition in Singapore May 19, 2015. (Reuters)
Visitors watch a demonstration at the Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) booth in the IMDEX Asia maritime defense exhibition in Singapore May 19, 2015. (Reuters)

Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) said on Wednesday it signed an agreement with Etihad Engineering to establish a facility in Abu Dhabi that will convert Boeing 777-300ER passenger planes into cargo aircraft.

The new facility, which will operate as the company’s maintenance center in Abu Dhabi, aims to meet the growing demand for large cargo jets.

“Not only do we see the demand, but we view it as a greener, more profitable, highly innovative solution for our airline customers, and an excellent way to drive value for our business,” Tony Douglas, chief executive of Etihad Aviation Group, said in a statement.

Demand for cargo plane conversions has been on the rise with the increase in ecommerce and the decline in value of used planes during the COVID-19 pandemic.

State-owned IAI currently converts Boeing 737, 747 and 767 passenger aircraft for cargo use. It has said it is currently developing a conversion method for the Boeing 777 and expects to finish the licensing process in 2023.

The deal comes a year after Israel and the United Arab Emirates agreed to normalize relations under the US-sponsored Abraham Accords.

Over the past year, Israeli firms have forged a number of deals in the UAE.

In March, IAI said it would jointly develop an advanced drone defense system with the UAE’s state-owned weapons maker EDGE.

Yossi Melamed, head of IAI´s Aviation Group, said the latest deal adds a “significant tier to the relations between Israel and the Gulf States” and that “additional agreements with companies in the region will arrive, and they will economically benefit all sides involved.”

IAI already operates cargo conversion sites including an existing line at its headquarters at Ben Gurion International Airport near Tel Aviv.

Etihad Engineering is one of the largest commercial aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services providers in the Middle East, and the center in Abu Dhabi will be the largest and most advanced in the Middle East, IAI said.

It noted the facility will be certified by the UAE Civil Aviation Authority, the US Federal Aviation Administration, and the European Aviation Safety Agency.



Egypt Approves $91 Billion Budget for 2025/26

 The sun rises in Cairo, Egypt March 25, 2025. (Reuters)
The sun rises in Cairo, Egypt March 25, 2025. (Reuters)
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Egypt Approves $91 Billion Budget for 2025/26

 The sun rises in Cairo, Egypt March 25, 2025. (Reuters)
The sun rises in Cairo, Egypt March 25, 2025. (Reuters)

Egypt's cabinet approved a 4.6 trillion Egyptian pound ($91 billion) draft state budget for the financial year that will begin in July, a government statement said on Wednesday, as it continues to tighten its finances under an IMF program.

Expenditures will rise by 18% and revenue by 19% over the current 2024/25 budget. Revenue is expected to hit 3.1 trillion pounds, working out to a deficit of about 1.5 trillion pounds ($30 billion).

The increased expenditure partly reflects elevated headline inflation, which was running at an annual 12.8% in February.

Financial reforms under an $8 billion financial reform program signed in March 2024 with the International Monetary Fund have helped Egypt bring inflation down from a peak of 38% in September 2023.

The IMF this month approved the disbursement of $1.2 billion to Egypt after its fourth review of the program.

The new budget targets a primary surplus of 795 billion pounds, equal to 4% of GDP, up from the 3.5% primary surplus originally targeted in the 2024/25 budget.

The IMF granted the government a waiver in the fourth review after the surplus came in 0.5% of GDP lower than Egypt's earlier commitment.

In its third review in June, the IMF praised Egypt for its "strict control of spending".

The new budget also lowers public debt to 82.9% of GDP from an expected 92% in 2024/25, the cabinet statement said.

The cabinet said 732.6 billion pounds in spending in the new budget would be allocated for subsidies, grants and social benefits, an increase of 15.2%.

The budget increases commodities and bread subsidies by 20% to 160 billion pounds. It will also include 75 billion pounds to subsidize petroleum products, 75 billion pounds to subsidize electricity and 3.5 billion pounds to subsidize natural gas deliveries to households, the statement added.