Kuwait Airways

Kuwait Airways was founded in 1954 as Kuwait National Airways, launching operations with a single Douglas DC-3 that flew to Bahrain, Damascus, and Beirut. The airline was fully nationalized in 1963 and has since been wholly owned by the Kuwaiti government. Its headquarters sit at Kuwait International Airport in Al Farwaniyah Governorate, and the carrier now serves about 35 destinations across the Middle East, Europe, Asia, and North America.

The airline's brand identity centers on the Arabian oryx, a native antelope featured on its tailfins and in its Oryx Plus loyalty program and Oryx in-flight entertainment system. Its livery uses blue, red, and gold to echo the Kuwaiti flag. Recent modernization includes taking delivery of the first Airbus A330-800neo in the Middle East in 2023 and a digital transformation initiative launched in 2024 to upgrade its website and mobile app.

Kuwait Airways has faced headwinds, including a 2018 controversy over refusing tickets to Israeli passport holders, which led to legal challenges in the U.S. and Europe. The airline is undergoing a restructuring plan aimed at returning to profitability by 2027, after posting a net loss of KWD 54.8 million (about USD 179 million) in the 2022/2023 fiscal year.[edit]