Saudi Arabian Airlines Plans to Increase Flights to Indonesia
Saudi Arabian Airlines, the Jeddah-based flag carrier airline of Saudi Arabia, plans to increase its flight frequency to Indonesia's capital city of Jakarta from 14 flights to 18 flights per week. According to Marwan M. Altoumah, Saudi Airlines' Area Manager for Indonesia, Australia and New Zealand, demand for flights between Saudi Arabia and Indonesia is on the rise and therefore the airline wants to cater this demand. By the end of the year, Saudi Arabian Airlines intends to submit its request for additional flights to Jakarta and Surabaya.
A higher flight frequency between Jakarta and Saudi Arabia is also possible due to the airline's expanding fleet, which now numbers 122 airplanes (consisting of Airbuses, Boeings and Embraers).
As there exists a continuous flow of Indonesian Muslim travelers that visit Mecca for the pilgrimage (either the Umrah or Hajj), Saudi Arabian Airlines can tap this potential by offering more non-stop and high-quality flights between both nations. In that context, the airline also wants to add other routes (besides the capital city of Jakarta). For example, the airline is interested to start operating flights between Saudi Arabia and Makassar (South Sulawesi). With around 210 million Indonesian Muslims, Indonesia has the world's largest Umrah community (in contrast to the Hajj, the Umrah is a pilgrimage to Mecca that can be undertaken at any time of the year)