Gulf Air Airbus A320. By Rob Finlayson

Bahrain-based Gulf Air, which announced a major restructuring plan last week, will cut its workforce by one-third. The Bahraini national carrier is targeting a 24% decrease in costs by year end and is reducing its fleet from 35 to 26 aircraft. While it will keep some widebody aircraft, it will increase regional services using the Airbus A320 family.

Gulf Air has dropped eight destinations—comprising Dhaka, Kathmandu, Colombo, Copenhagen, Rome, Kabul, Aden and Erbil—from its network.  

Two leased Embraer E-190s, which were brought into service in recent years to serve regional routes, will be phased out to simplify the fleet’s structure.

It is not certain if the restructuring plan will affect Gulf Air’s orders with Airbus and Boeing, which were placed in November. The carrier ordered eight Airbus A320ceos and “up to 16” A320neos, and modified a Boeing order for “12 to 16” 787s.

The airline will focus on point-to-point services, dropping less lucrative transit traffic and increasing what it described as the Arabian Gulf’s strongest regional network.

“It’s all about adding value to the economy of Bahrain,” a Gulf Air spokesperson said. “We want to provide a service for Bahrain and Bahrainis. There is an opportunity in the market to strengthen that niche position as a regional carrier.”