The development follows country open skies deal with the EU to spur tourism growth. Recently, Morocco signed an open skies agreement with the EU, which will come into force in 2006, to promote tourism, as the country intensifies plans to double the number of tourists to 10 million by 2010, with a turnover of 10 billion US dollars.

The airline, named Jet4you, will start its operation in March next year, with two leased planes and envisages to expand its fleet by two aircraft each year to 10 jets in 2010, its chairman Jawad Ziyat told media. The airline projects to carry 160,000 passengers in the first year of its operation before reaching 900,000 in 2008 and 1.7 million passengers in 2010, he reportedly said.

According to Reuters, it has an initial capital of 60 million Moroccan dirhams and officially owned by a newly created company named Aviation Investment Company (AIC). German TUI owns 40 percent in AIC and in Jet4you while Morocco largest private bank Attijariwafa and investment fund Investima, investment arm of Societe Generale Marocaine de Banques (SGMB), a French bank Societe Generale subsidiary, has 20 percent share each. The report added that private businessmen Guy Marrache and Ahmed Benabbes Taarji, co-owner of Moroccan leisure conglomerate Holidays Services own 20 percent stake in the airline together.

That initial capital is enough for the airline to start its business without borrowing from banks,said Ziyat.

In the same report, TUI representative Elie Bruyninckx said his group invested in Jet4you because it is encouraged by Morocco's policy to develop the tourism industry and open the air travel business for competition. We are partners in such an operation because Morocco has a vision of the future and a potential of growth,he said.