Tag Archives: Saudia

Etihad Airways, United Arab Emirates, and Saudia have marked the first anniversary of their commercial partnership by announcing 12 new codeshare routes to key destinations in Asia and Europe. Since signing their agreement in October 2018, the two airlines have placed their flight codes on each other’s services between Abu Dhabi and the Saudi Arabian cities of Dammam, Jeddah, Riyadh and Medina. Saudia has also added its ‘SV’ code to Etihad flights between Abu Dhabi and 12 more destinations – Ahmedabad, Belgrade, Brisbane, Chengdu, Chicago, Dusseldorf, Lagos, Melbourne, Moscow-Domodedovo, Rabat, Seychelles and Sydney. Etihad has placed its ‘EY’ code on Saudia flights to Peshawar, Multan, Port Sudan and Vienna. Under the deal announced today, Saudia will progressively add its code to Etihad flights between Abu Dhabi and 11 more destinations in nine countries- Amsterdam, Baku, Brussels, Dublin, Hong Kong, Kathmandu, Bangkok, Phuket, Nagoya, Tokyo and Seoul, significantly extending Saudia’s reach. Tony Douglas, Group Chief Executive Officer of Etihad Aviation Group, said, “The United Arab Emirates and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia enjoy strong economic, diplomatic and cultural links, and the partnership between our two national carriers is a natural and productive extension of these ties. The increased collaboration we have announced today will deliver even more growth to both airlines, provide greater choice for our passengers and freight customers, and further strengthen the ties between our nations.” Eng. Saleh bin Nasser Al-Jasser, Director General, Saudi Arabian Airlines, commented, “Network growth and increased access to destinations provides our guests with greater flexibility and convenience. We are pleased to further enhance our collaboration with Etihad Airways and continue to support the growth in services and routes.”

Set to be held from April 30 to May 1, CONNECT Middle East, India & Africa 2019 is expected to bring together airline specialists, aviation authorities, tourism boards, airports and tour operators, as well as other travel-related industry professionals. Fourteen airlines have already confirmed their participation at CONNECT Middle East, India & Africa – co-located with Arabian Travel Market 2019 and taking place at Dubai World Trade Centre. Senior network planning teams from Emirates, Etihad, flydubai, Air Arabia, Air Asia, EgyptAir, flyadeal, Ethiopian Airlines, Global Airways, Atlas Global, Germania, Mahan Air, Royal Air Maroc and Titan Airways will attend the inaugural route development forum. Throughout 2018, GCC airlines have added 58 new flight routes – focusing on areas of consistent and substantial growth – according to research from Colliers International – based on a sample of 10 airlines including Emirates, Etihad, flydubai, Salaam Air, Oman Air, Gulf Air, Saudia, flyadeal, Air Arabia and IndiGo airlines. Karin Butot, CEO, The Airport Agency, said, “2018 has been an exciting year for new flight routes both to and from the GCC, underscoring Dubai as the ideal location to bring together professionals from the aviation and tourism industry for the inaugural CONNECT Middle East, India and Africa forum. With up to 400 delegates, CONNECT Middle East, India & Africa 2019 will include unlimited one-to-one pre-scheduled appointments, a conference programme, panel discussions and airline and  industry briefings as well as an exhibition area dedicated to airports and suppliers.” Nick Pilbeam, Divisional Director, Reed Travel Exhibitions, said, “It is an ideal base for exploring some of the world’s most interesting and previously inaccessible corners of the world. And the GCC’s airlines are making it even easier with the …

Etihad Airways and Saudia have announced a new codeshare partnership, providing customers with access to more than 40 leisure and business destinations in the home markets and across the world. The two carriers also announced plans for greater commercial cooperation in other fields, including frequent flyer programme benefits, cargo and engineering, and maintenance. The codeshare agreement was signed at Saudia headquarters in Jeddah by HE Eng Saleh bin Naser Al Jasser, Director General Saudi Arabian Airlines; Tony Douglas, Group Chief Executive Officer, Etihad Aviation Group. They were joined by Jaan Albercht, Chief Executive Officer, Saudia; Ahmed Al Qubaisi, Senior Vice President – Government & International Affairs, Etihad Aviation Group and Ali Saleh, Vice President Alliances & Partnerships, Etihad Aviation Group. HE Al Jasser said, “The new partnership broadens aviation and transport links with the United Arab Emirates, building on the extensive aviation investment and strong foundation in the sector. The added network coverage enables our guests to benefit from added flexibility and convenience, as well as increase the benefits for members of both airlines’ frequent flyer plans.” The codeshare agreement will see Etihad Airways place its ‘EY’ code on Saudia’s flights to Abha, Al-Baha, Alula, Arar, Bisha, Dammam, Dawadmi, Gassim, Gizan, Gurayat, Hail, Hofuf, Jeddah, Jouf, Madinah, Qaisumah, Rafha, Riyadh, Sharurah, Tabuk, Taif, Turaif, Wadi-Ad-Dawasir, Wedjh, Yanbo and Abu Dhabi. Port Sudan, Tunis, Alexandria, Sharm el-Sheikh, Multan and Peshawar are subject to government approval. At the same time, Saudia will place its ‘SV’ code on Etihad flights to Baku, Chengdu, Ahmedabad, Nagoya, Tokyo-Narita, Dammam, Jeddah, Madinah, Riyadh, Belgrade, Seychelles,  Chicago-O’Hare and Abu Dhabi.  

Jeddah-based national carrier of Saudi Arabia, Saudia (Saudi Arabian Airlines), will deploy its new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, known for its two-class configuration of 24 fully flat seats in Business Class and 274 seats in Guest Class, on its new route from Riyadh and Jeddah to the Republic of Mauritius beginning September 14, 2017. For the first time, the two nations will have regular scheduled flights, providing a seamless link between Mauritius and Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Flight SV481 will operate from Riyadh to Mauritius, with a brief one-hour stop in Jeddah, three times a week. The total flying time to Mauritius will be 9 hours from Riyadh and 7 hours 20 minutes from Jeddah. Director General of Saudi Arabian Airlines, His Excellency Saleh bin Nasser Al-Jasser commented on the impending start of the new route, “The start of services to the island of Mauritius provides guests with a unique destination to visit. We thank the Government of the Republic of Mauritius and the civil authority for welcoming SAUDIA and extending their full support.”

In keeping with the recent instructions from the governments of UAE, Saudi and Bahrain, seven carriers from the various Middle East countries have suspended their services to Doha with effect from June 6, 2017 until further notice. Among these airlines are Royal Jets, Etihad, Emirates, flydubai and Air Arabia from UAE; Saudia from Saudi and Gulf Air from Bahrain. While Etihad, Emirates and flydubai suspended all flights between Dubai and Doha, Royal Jets suspended their services between Abu Dhabi and Doha and Air Arabia suspended their flights between Sharjah and Ras al Khaimah and Doha. Saudia has suspended its flights between Saudi and Doha and Gulf Air between Bahrain and Doha. So all customers who have booked tickets on any of these airlines for flying to Doha will have to contact the airlines for alternative options, which will include full refunds on unused tickets or free re-booking to the nearest alternate destinations. For detailed information, the relevant airlines can be called or their websites can be looked up.

Saudi Arabian Airlines (Saudia), the national carrier of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, is entering into an agreement with Expedia Affiliate Network (EAN) in the launch of Saudia Holidays to offer tailored, world-class travel packages to the airline’s passengers. Saudia, which carried more than 29 million passengers last year, and has a network of 86 domestic and international destinations, is launching Saudia Holidays to provide exceptional value and choice across the Kingdom and internationally. Through its agreement with EAN, Saudia Holidays will offer travellers access to more than 260,000 quality hotel accommodations in over 29,000 destinations, including Makkah, Jeddah, Riyadh, Dubai, London, Paris and New York. It will access EAN’s full range of preferential rates and deals, creating competitive pricing for Saudia Holidays’ customers.  EAN was selected because of its worldwide accommodation portfolio, its dynamic packaging strengths and the flexibility of its technology, which includes the ability for travelers to pay for a hotel reservation at the time of booking or upon arrival. Also key was EAN’s ability to offer a fully outsourced, turnkey solution in collaboration with Bahrain-based travel technology and services specialist TCIG. Together, the businesses’ responsibilities include building and maintaining the Saudia Holidays ecommerce website; the fulfilment of air, hotel and vehicle reservations; the operation of customer call centres; and the delivery of outstanding service to all Saudia Holidays customers.f

Saudi Arabian Airlines (Saudia) has announced its decision to implement International Air Transport Association’s (IATA) New Distribution Capability (NDC) in a modular approach. Saudia has appointed TPConnects, a leading technology solutions provider, as its NDC distribution partner to manage the NDC standard platform. At Saudia, implementation of NDC is seen as a major Transformation project focusing on revenue drivers, major cost reducing programs and implementing ONE Order initiatives, beyond opportunities in distribution. NDC standards enable Saudia to offer our guests the opportunity to have a consistent shopping experience, including access to rich content, ability to buy ancillary products and services and to be recognized and receive personalized offers, wherever they shop for Saudia products, especially from the travel agents and Online Travel Agency channels. The introduction of NDC could help travel agents to improve the offering to the customer, to upsell additional services including branded fares or fare families which are of value to both the traveler and the corporation and create business process improvements.