Saudi Arabian Airlines (SAUDIA), the national carrier of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, has reached new heights in its 73 year history, revealing milestone figures from Q1 2018 results.

With the growth of seat capacity at 9 percent, total passenger growth has steadily increased – carrying 8.3 million guests, and a 19percent increase in international guests.

The airline currently flies to 89 destinations across four continents, and as the national carrier of the Kingdom, the Land of the Two Holy Mosques, increasingly guests are flying with SAUDIA for Umrah and Haj pilgrimage.

The operations have grown steadily both on the domestic and international fronts, flying 52,000 flights in the first quarter – an increase of 5 percent during the same period last year.

Strategic growth

Commenting on the latest results, the Director General of Saudi Arabian Airlines Eng. Saleh bin Nasser al-Jasser said: “SAUDIA’s growth and transformation has been underway for several years, and the results have shown how the strategic growth plans, new infrastructure and guest experience investments have contributed to the airline’s recent successes.”

“The airline’s SV2020 Transformation Plan is a comprehensive, all-encompassing journey to build on SAUDIA’s solid foundation. We are pleased to be growing in all areas across the business, meanwhile showcasing SAUDIA’s hospitality to the world.”

Operational growth has been accelerated with the addition of eight new wide and narrow-body aircraft that have joined the fleet, taking the total count up to 146 aircraft. The airline is set to reach 200 aircraft by 2020, flying one of the youngest and modern fleets in the skies.

SAUDIA flies a mix of Airbus and Boeing aircraft, with the latest aircraft types, including the Boeing 777-300ER, Boeing 787 Dreamliner, Airbus A330 Regional – of which SAUDIA is the World Launch Customer & Operator, and Airbus A320.

In 2017 SAUDIA earned the title “World’s Most Improved Airline” by ‘Skytrax’, the international air transport rating organization.

Source english.alarabiya.net