Egypt could soon have its own all-business class airline, if an unlikely new partnership pans out. Maldives-based premium carrier Beond Airlines and Egypt's Air Cairo have signed a memorandum of understanding to launch Beond-branded, all-business class flights connecting Egypt with Europe and the Gulf from summer 2027. The idea is squarely aimed at inbound tourism: getting visitors to Egypt's Red Sea coast, ancient sites and cities feeling rested rather than jet-lagged.
There's an obvious irony here. Air Cairo operates an entirely economy-configured fleet — it has never seen fit to install even a small business class cabin — yet it will now operate planes with nothing but business class. Routes and schedules are still to be confirmed, with bookings expected to open in the first half of 2027.
The announcement has heavyweight backing, at least on paper. Beond CEO Tero Taskila pitched the concept with the line that the holiday should start at home, not at the hotel, while Egypt's tourism minister Sherif Fathy framed the deal as part of a strategy to broaden the country's tourism products and improve connectivity.
Whether it happens is another matter. Beond launched in 2023 promising 32 aircraft and 60 destinations within five years; it currently operates two planes with no firm orders on the table. The airline announced 18 new destinations in April 2025 that mostly never materialised, has repeatedly suspended operations, delayed staff payments, and in late 2025 unveiled a US subsidiary plan with a partner airline — New Pacific — that liquidated weeks later. The pattern looks less like an expansion strategy and more like a rolling series of fundraising pitches, possibly chasing government subsidies in Saudi Arabia's Red Sea giga-projects and now, perhaps, Egypt.
The economics are also questionable. Egypt is overwhelmingly a budget holiday market — that's a big part of its appeal — so an all-premium product there is a stretch even for a carrier that couldn't make the model work in the Maldives, a destination that actually attracts luxury spenders. To be fair to Beond, reviewers who have flown it describe a genuinely pleasant onboard experience, marred mainly by the lack of Wi-Fi and the refuelling stops its limited-range aircraft require.
For travellers, file this under 'interesting, don't book yet'. If it launches, it could be a genuinely comfortable way to reach Hurghada, Sharm el-Sheikh or Cairo from Europe and the Gulf — but given Beond's track record of announcements that don't turn into aeroplanes, we'd wait until tickets are actually on sale and flights are operating before rearranging any plans. One Mile at a Time
