Qatar Airways plans 71% rise in Saudi flights

Qatar Airways said on Wednesday it is to significantly increase services to Saudi Arabia with the introduction of a fourth destination and additional services to existing markets, representing a 71 percent rise in flights.

The western Saudi city of Madinah becomes the Doha-based airline's newest destination with four flights a week, beginning July 14.

Madinah is the second holiest city of Islam after Makkah and home to the three oldest mosques in the Islamic religion.

The new route launch is in addition to increased capacity to Saudi Arabia's two largest cities - the capital Riyadh and Red Sea port city of Jeddah, which saw their daily services rise to double daily, effective June 1.

Also from June 1, the eastern city of Dammam will see capacity increase from the current 21 flights a week to 28.

Dammam, the third largest city in Saudi Arabia, is the capital of the country's oil-rich Eastern Province and a key commercial hub and port in the kingdom.

Qatar Airways is operating a mix of narrow-body Airbus A320s and wide-body Airbus A330s and its flagship Boeing 777 aircraft on flights to and from Saudi Arabia.

Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker said: "The extra flights to Saudi Arabia are a welcome boost to our schedules, for our passengers and also towards our commitment to the market.

"Saudi Arabia is the largest of the GCC countries and a natural market for Qatar Airways to step up its presence.

"We are delighted to be facilitating travel to and from the Kingdom and look forward to building on what are already strong links between our two countries, the State of Qatar and Saudi Arabia."

Qatar Airways currently operates a fleet of 97 aircraft from its Doha hub to 100 key business and leisure cities worldwide.