First budget flight between UK and the Gulf to launch

New Jazeera Airways connection to Kuwait will be the longest using an Airbus A320

Gulf hub: Jazeera Airways is a small low-cost operator based in Kuwait (Jazeera Airways)

The first nonstop link from the UK to the Gulf on a budget airline is scheduled to begin on 27 October 2019.

Jazeera Airways will fly daily from London Gatwick to Kuwait using the airline’s sole Airbus A320 neo – a longer-range and more efficient version of the long-established narrow-bodied aircraft.

The trip is scheduled to take six hours, 20 minutes eastbound from Gatwick, and seven hours, five minutes coming back.

The airline says that the lowest economy fare will be £370 return, but that looks ambitiously high. In November, both British Airways and Kuwait Airways are selling return tickets from Heathrow for under £400, including complementary catering.

One-stop flights from the UK to Kuwait are as low as £222 return.

Low fares are likely to be available for onward connections on Jazeera Airways to Bahrain, Doha, Dubai and Delhi.

Business class, offering slightly more legroom and elbow room, starts at £1,050 return.

“The middle seat has been transformed into an extra workspace with additional privacy so you can sit back and enjoy the pleasant onboard atmosphere,” says the airline.

A new Premium Economy class is also available at £800 return.

The Independent was unable to make test bookings to check fares because seat inventory for the new link has not yet been loaded on to the airline’s website.

Presumably because of a problem acquiring slots at Gatwick – the busiest single-runway airport in the world – the timings of the flight varies from one day to the next.

The earliest outbound from Gatwick is on Sunday at 12.35pm, arriving in Kuwait just before 10pm. The latest is on Saturday at 4.40pm, getting in at 2am on Sunday.

The most direct track between the two airports is 2,893 miles, routing over France, Belgium, Germany, Austria, Romania, Bulgaria, Turkey, Syria and Iraq. But the flight is expected to cover more than 3,000 miles because of airspace restrictions.

The airline claims it will be the longest flight flown with an A320 neo.

The existing longest flight to and from the UK using an A320 is between Manchester and Hurghada, scheduled to take six hours to cover a direct distance of 2,578 miles. Jazeera Airways is a small low-cost carrier with just 10 aircraft. Like its rival, Kuwait Airways, it does not serve alcohol.

Unlike most low-cost airlines, Jazeera Airways gives economy passengers a free 30kg baggage allowance.