Low-cost carrier flydubai said on Wednesday that it will hire 600 pilots over the next five years as it expands its fleet and adds new routes.

The Dubai-based carrier, which already has over 200 pilots, will recruit another 600 by 2016, its chief executive officer Ghaith Al Ghaith said in an emailed statement.

The airline currently operates a fleet of 16 Boeing 737-800 NG aircraft. It placed an order for 50 Boeing planes in 2008, the last of which is due to be delivered in 2016.

Government-owned flydubai started commercial flights in 2009 and competes with regional low-cost carriers like United Arab Emirates-based Air Arabia and Kuwait's Jazeera Airways.

Last year, Dubai announced plans to more than double flydubai's capital to Dh500 million ($136 million). – Reuters