Saudi Arabia to open skies to Gulf airlines

Saudi Arabia's General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) unveiled plans to open the kingdom's skies to Gulf airlines. Khalid Al Khaibary, spokesman for the GACA, has said that the authority is seriously considering allowing the GCC-based airlines to operate domestic services in the kingdom. The GACA's move came at a time when there were rumours that the authority would not allow Gulf airlines to operate domestic flights here. There are several factors attributed to this move. Most important among them is that the kingdom's airlines are not in a position to compete with other Gulf airlines as the latter enjoy the full support of their respective governments. Article continues below Improving transport Al Khaibary said in a statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency that the opening of Saudi skies would help improve domestic air transport services and boost the kingdom's social and economic development. "The top officials of the authority are seriously considering various aspects of the matter. The new move would be helpful to both citizens and expatriates," he added. Meanwhile, Prince Fahd Bin Abdullah, Assistant Minister of Defence and Aviation at the Civil Aviation Affairs and deputy chairman of the GACA board of directors, said that the authority has not received applications from any Gulf airline seeking a licence to operate domestic services in the kingdom. He noted that the domestic airline sector here was more attractive compared to that of some other countries in the region. The charges are stable and cheaper than in countries such as Sudan and Yemen, he said. It is also noteworthy that the Shoura Council earlier approved a study proposing to grant licences to Gulf airlines to operate domestic services in the kingdom. The Council had also directed Saudi Arabian Airlines, the national flag carrier, to re-start services to some local airports following the travel crisis as a result of discontinuation of services stopped by budget airlines Sama and Nas Air. Sama withdrew from the market last year. The Saudi aviation market makes up about 29 per cent of the aviation sector in the Middle East. Budget offer Saudi Arabia's budget airline Nas Air has introduced new offers of reduced ticket prices starting at 279 Saudi riyals (Dh273), including taxes. Turki Al Juaiwani, deputy chairman of the airline for the commercial sector, said that the offers are available until August 20. There are 50,000 tickets at discounted rates that can be used between September 15 and October 20, he said, adding that the tickets can be bought from the airline's retail sales outlets or through their online purchase website flynas.com.