The board of directors of Saudi air carrier Flynas has approved the opening of the company’s units in two more countries as part of its plan to become the largest low-cost carrier in the Middle East and one of the world’s largest budget carriers.
Flynas, which is headquartered in Riyadh, will seek operating certificates in two other states, expecting to double its operations, the company said in a statement cited by Bloomberg. However, the company did not specify what countries it was talking about.
Saudi Arabia has invested heavily in the aviation sector as it seeks to make the economy less dependent on oil and become one of the world’s largest tourist destinations by 2030. The plan includes building a new airport in Riyadh and creating a new airline.
Flynas plans to increase its purchases of airliners to 250, and the company is considering buying wide-body aircraft, including the Boeing 787 and A350.
Flynas began flying under the Nas Air brand in 2007. The company is partly owned by Kingdom Holding, an investment company controlled by Saudi Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal.
Flynas Airlines (Saudi Arabia) enters the Ukrainian market with regular flights between Ukraine and Saudi Arabia.
The Infrastructure Ministry of Ukraine said on Facebook that on May 31 a meeting was held between Minister of Infrastructure Oleksandr Kubrakov and CEO of Flynas Bander Al-Mohanna.
“Each new flight is, first of all, new opportunities for development of business, tourism and Ukraine’s integration into world markets. That is why the increase in regular routes of direct flights is among the priorities of the ministry. We want Ukraine to become a major international air hub, and such steps make us closer to this goal,” Kubrakov said.
Previously, Ukraine did not have regular direct flights with Saudi Arabia. For the flight, a transfer was needed through Istanbul, Doha or Dubai.
Flynas is Saudi Arabia’s leading low cost airline with a fleet of 30 aircraft. The airline operates over 1,200 flights weekly to 35 domestic and international destinations. The airline has recently entered into an agreement with Airbus to purchase 120 new aircraft for a total value of $8.6 billion.
