Leisure airline BeOnd to offer flights from Bahrain

• Luxury carrier based in Dubai
• Analyst: sector focused on quality
• Could contribute $1.5bn to GDP

The arrival of leisure airline BeOnd in Bahrain reflects the country’s focus on quality over quantity in aviation, according to an industry analyst.

The Dubai-based carrier has signed a deal with the country’s civil aviation authority to launch operations at Bahrain International Airport.

The premium leisure airline, which operates between Europe, the Middle East and the Maldives, aims to deploy up to 20 aircraft and carry 1 million passengers by 2030. 

“This will not transform Bahrain into a mega-hub,” said Linus Bauer, founder of BAA Aviation. “The impact is qualitative – yield, brand and premium mix – not quantitative.”

Tero Taskila, CEO of BeOnd, said the move was a “natural next step” in its “multi-jurisdictional strategy”. 

“We have the opportunity to build a premium aviation platform that strengthens connectivity, develops specialised talent and supports innovation across the travel value chain.”

The airline has yet to receive an air operator certificate from the Bahraini authorities, which will allow it to conduct commercial air transport operations. Taskila said that once this was obtained, BeOnd could contribute up to $1.5 billion to the kingdom’s gross domestic product in its first five years.

BeOnd said the move would create about 1,200 direct high-skilled jobs and support more than 6,000 indirect roles in tourism, hospitality and logistics.

The airline, which now has its administrative headquarters in Dubai, originally operated out of Velana airport in the Maldives. It began commercial operations in late 2022 and signed a deal to offer flights in Saudi Arabia at the end of 2025.

About 15 million people visited Bahrain in 2025, according to tourism officials.