KARACHI: SaudiGulf Airlines, the new national carrier of Saudi Arabia, has announced it will begin flights to Pakistan from October 15.
This will be the airline's first international operation for Pakistan.
“Pakistan is a big market for airline business with an annual turnover of around 2 million passengers flying between Pakistan and the Kingdom, mainly for Umrah and Hajj,” Karim Makhlouf, Chief Commercial Officer of SaudiGulf Airlines, said at a press conference.
The Kingdom issues 1.5 million visas a year to Pakistanis and the number is expected to rise to 2 million this year. “We are adding flights to cater to the growing demand of Umrah traffic out of Pakistan,” he added.
The airline has two dedicated new aircrafts for Pakistan, connecting passengers from Pakistan to the Saudi cities of Dammam, Jeddah, Abha and Riyadh.
Fares start from PKR 40,000 ($323, SR1,209) and the fare includes free seat selection and hot meals. “For the first year, we are targeting 80,000 passengers,” Makhlouf said, adding: “We are offering introductory fare 20 percent less than Pakistan International Airlines [PIA] and Saudi Airlines.”
Making King Fahd International Airport in Dammam as the hub, the SaudiGulf Airlines will offer highest number of flights between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.
“The airline will be first to offer immigration facilities at Dammam’s King Fahd International Airport from where the flights to Jeddah and other cities would operate as domestic,” Makhlouf said.
SaudiGulf Airlines has scheduled 14 weekly flights from Pakistan, four each from Islamabad and Lahore and three each from Sialkot and Karachi. The airline plans to add Multan and Faisalabad.
Egypt will be the next international venture followed by London, Frankfurt, Sudan, India and Sri Lanka.
Samer Majali, CEO of SaudiGulf Airlines, in his video message, said the company in the private sector of Saudi Arabia started operation with four aircraft back in 2016 and gradually increased the fleet to 16. “We are planning to increase the fleet to 20 aircraft within next couple of years,” Malaji said.
SaudiGulf Airlines will be represented by Gerry’s Group in Pakistan. “Arrival of SaudiGulf Airlines as a direct Saudi carrier will significantly boost the travel trade industry of Pakistan,” said Arshad Wali Muhammad, Gerry’s Group Director.
The SaudiGulf Airlines move shows that international companies are focusing Pakistan and considering the country as a potential destination for business.
“Every year 1.5 million Pakistanis travel to Kingdom to perform Ummrah, 200,000 to perform Hajj, 200,000 for jobs and the number of families who travel are in thousands,” Muhammad Yahya Polani, former president of Pakistan Travel Agents Association TAAP, told Arab News.
Polani called for open sky policy and reforms in the country’s national flag carrier, PIA, which is suffering from huge financial losses. “Pakistan needs to make the national airline profitable by running on business model rather than employment bureau where appointments are made on political basis instead of on merit,” Polani added.
Owned by Abdel Hadi Al Qahtani and Sons Holding Company (Tariq Al Qahtani and Brothers) SaudiGulf Airlines set up in 2016 as a private company to support the requirements of the air transport industry, and the increasing demand for a high quality national carrier to comply with the Vision 2030 ambition of increasing traffic in and out of the country.