Qatar Airways to Increase Flights to Saudi Arabia

Qatar Airways is to significantly increase flights to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia with the introduction of a fourth destination and additional services to existing markets, representing a dramatic 71% rise in frequency.

The western Saudi city of Medina becomes the Doha-based airline’s newest destination in the Kingdom with four-flights-a-week, beginning 14 July 2011. Medina is the second holiest city of Islam after Mecca and home to the three oldest mosques in the Islamic religion.

The Doha – Medina route will be operated non-stop with an Airbus A320 in a two-class configuration of 12 seats in First Class and 132 in Economy.

The new route launch is in addition to increased capacity to Saudi Arabia’s two largest cities – the capital Riyadh and Red Sea port city of Jeddah, which will each see their daily services rise to double daily, effective 1 June 2011.

Also from 1 June, the eastern city of Dammam will see capacity increase from the current 21 flights a week to 28. Dammam, the third largest city in Saudi Arabia, is the capital of the country’s oil-rich Eastern Province and a key commercial hub and port in the Kingdom.

Qatar Airways is operating a mix of narrow-body Airbus A320s and wide-body Airbus A330s and its flagship Boeing 777 aircraft on flights to and from Saudi Arabia.

 “The extra flights to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia are a welcome boost to our schedules, for our passengers and also towards our commitment to the market,” said Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Akbar Al Baker. “Saudi Arabia is the largest of the GCC countries and a natural market for Qatar Airways to step up its presence. We are delighted to be facilitating travel to and from the Kingdom and look forward to building on what are already strong links between our two countries, the State of Qatar and Saudi Arabia.”

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