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In the News from Panama

Dubai-Panama Connection a ‘Matter of Time’

A long-discussed direct flight from Dubai to Panama is almost certainly going to happen in the near future as the wealthy emirate and Panama grow increasingly close, the Panama ambassador to the UAE said in a recent interview.

A direct flight from Dubai to Panama is “only a matter of time,” Eduardo Fonseca, Panama’s ambassador in the UAE, told Arabian Business.

Dubai and Panama are natural allies. Both are global economic destinations, attracting a wide variety of investors and businesses, including a focus on trade and shipping. Panama is the “Hub of the Americas”; Dubai is the hub of the Middle East.

The UAE already has several business interests in Panama and a direct flight would serve to strengthen those connections, especially with the property industry. Emiratis are big investors in real estate and Panama is already seeing an increase in investors from the UAE.

A direct flight to Panama from Dubai might be the longest in the world, checking in at more than 17 hours. A flight was announced in 2016 but then shelved due to a variety of technical issues.

However, since then, the economic ties between the UAE and Panama have continued to grow. Since Emirates Airline, Dubai’s official carrier, opened a regional commercial office in Panama City, there has been an “exponential increase in traffic that has originated from the region and is currently being routed through the Florida and Brazil flights,” Fonseca said.

In February, an Emirates Airlines spokesperson told the publication, “we firmly believe in the potential of Central America and remain keen to link the Emirates network to the region in the future.” The original announcement in 2016 sparked “huge interest” in Panama, Fonseca said.