News Articles

Saudia increases baggage limits

Saudi Arabian Airlines (SV) has increased the weight limit and the number of pieces of luggage that passengers may check in on domestic flights.
The move permits First and Business Class passengers to check in two items of luggage, each weighing a maximum 25kg, compared to the previous total limit of 40kg.Guest Class passengers are permitted one item weighing a maximum of 25kg, a five-kilogram increase, while Al Fursan members are allowed one more piece which should not exceed 25 kilos.

If any piece of luggage weighs more than 25kg the owner will be asked to redistribute the contents of the luggage in order that the total weight falls within the limits. If the number of pieces of luggage exceeds the limit, the passenger will be asked to pay a fine of SR100 for each piece over the limit. Similarly, if the number of pieces is over the limit but their total weight is within the limits, a SR200 fine will be applied to each piece.

Saudia DG’s Post Extended

The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz, has ordered an extension of service for H.E. Khaled Al-Mulhem in his post as Director General of Saudi Arabian Airlines. The extension will begin on April 24 and extend for a further four years.

"Saudi Arabia" cancels 28 trip to Europe due to volcanic ash

Saudi Arabian Airlines Announced the cancelation of  28 flights departing to Europe due to the Iceland volcano ashes, and that includes; six flights from Jeddah to London, four flights from Riyadh to London, a single flight from Dammam to London, a single flight to Germany, and two flights to Switzerland. While the canceled flights departing from Europe to Jeddah and Riyadh include; nine flights from London, and 3 flights from Paris.

Rome flights continue to operate as scheduled all flights departing to the rest of the European capitals have been prohibited until the danger of volcanoashes is gone

Due to the risk of associated to smoke; the natural disaster caused the cancelation of all local flights mainly in northern and central Europe as well. Thereturn of all flights is pending on the information issued by the European Union air transport

We apologies for any delay in handling your queries in our call centers and regret the inconvenience caused by these circumstances out of our control.

SV launches new Amadeus System

In line with its modernization program, Saudi Arabian Airlines (SV) has finalized preparations to launch its new Amadeus passenger services system. The airline sees Amadeus as a quantum leap in the field of integrated services for its passengers. It is designed to help make several facilities available, and will hopefully speed up automated travel procedures.  The new system will be effective Sunday, April, 11, 2010.

Announcing the launch of the Amadeus system, the Director General, Mr. Khaled Al-Molhem, stressed the importance of the system, which is currently being used by many large airlines."SV won’t be an exception among these international carriers, especially in its modernization era," Al-Molhem said.

He added that his company is keen to apply a new three-dimensional strategy. "This strategy mainly focuses on modernizing the fleet as a first step, then applying the latest technology whilst training the company’s staff, our most important investment, to keep them abreast of the latest developments," he said.

Al-Molhem pointed out that Amadeus is of great importance as it will provide the best and finest service to SV clients. "Amadeus will make it possible for passengers to complete their travel procedures themselves. The system will also help passengers get their boarding pass online. In addition, passengers will be able to buy flight tickets by calling the call center and making payments directly from their bank accounts,”" he said.

Al-Molhem stressed that SV will stop using the current ticket issuing system on April 10 at 7:00 P.M. He added that the airline has prepared its staff to efficiently move from the old system to the new.

Customer Relations SV Updates Customer Relations Services

Saudi Arabian Airlines has set up a new website for the public to contact its customer relations department quickly in order to inform them their observations, proposals and requirements.

Abdullah Al-Ajhar, Vice President Public Relations, said Saudi Airlines always gives top priority to the observations and complaints of its passengers, adding that they are taken care off with keenness.

“Customer relations are one of the Airline’s important departments. It receives, analyses and follows the demands and observations of passengers,” he said.

Al-Ajhar said Saudia considers passenger observations and demands as the main criteria for assessing its services, understanding customer satisfaction and addressing the weak points.

He said the Airline has allocated a hotline (026862828) to receive observations and proposals of passengers during office working hours. Calls related to baggage will be received on 026864430. There is a fax line 026864587 to contact the department.

Passengers and other customers can also interact with the department electronically either by visiting its website and filling the form on its link (www.saudiairlines.com/crform) or sending their messages to its email address customerrelations@saudiairlines.com. They can also send letters by post to its address: Customer Relations, Office No. 796, PB No. 620, Jeddah 21231 Saudi Arabia.

Passengers can also register their observations by writing them in special forms available onboard Saudia flights and hand them over to flight attendants.

“As part of its efforts to establish quick contacts with customers, Saudia has started distributing small cards among passengers when they wanted to register their observations at its domestic and international stations and sales offices,” Al-Ajhar said.

These cards carry information about the Customer Relations Department, its phone and fax numbers as well as electronic and postal address in both Arabic and English in addition to the name of the Saudia staff who receives the card with his signature.

SV Operates Flights to New Destinations in India

Saudi Arabian Airlines (SV) will commence flight operations to three new destinations in India during the coming week. This comes as part of the Airline’s strategic plan to expand its route network to include high traffic destinations with potentially higher yields.

SV will commence operations to Lucknow with three flights per week, effective the 28th of March, 2009.

It will commence operations to Bangalore with two flights per week, effective the 30th of March, 2009. And, it will commence operations to Calicut with four flights per week, effective the 31st of March, 2009. All flights operating to these stations will utilize Boeing B757 aircraft.

The number of destination that SV will be operating to between the Kingdom and India, will now include 8 stations in total. The station additions affirm the continuous increase in air travel to this sector, which occupies a prominent segment of the Airline’s international route network.

This came as a statement from Mr. Abdullah Bin Mushabbab Al-Ajhar, VP Public Relations, who verified that Saudi Arabian Airlines is keen on fulfilling all operation and traffic requirements on this, and on any other international sector as seen viable by marketing studies.

Saudi Arabian Airlines carried 334,251 passengers and uplifted 14,880,336 kg of cargo out of India in 2008.

Dial 920030000 for cancellation of reservation

Saudi Arabian Airlines has introduced a unified telephone number 920030000 to facilitate cancellation of reservations by its customers. The new service has been introduced as part of Saudia’s efforts to improve its services and strengthen its competitive position. It is similar to SV's unified reservation number (920022222).

The Airline has already started experimental operation of the new cancellation number in order to reduce pressure on the unified reservation number and help customers carry out cancellation of seats quickly.

When passengers dial the number they will receive an automatic reply stating that the reservation has been cancelled - as long as they call from the number which they used for the booking. If it is from another number, they will receive an answer saying Saudia will call you back.

Saudi Airlines Reservation Center received more than 1.2 million calls last year for cancellation of bookings. The Airline appreciates the cooperation of its customers as the cancellation will help other passengers to make use of available seats. It is worth mentioning that the center receives about 20 million calls a year.

SV's attaining third place for the distinction of its website on the internet

H.E. Mr. Khaled A. Almolhem, Director General, Saudi Arabian Airlines (SV) was recently presented with a commemorative plaque by H.E. Eng. Mohamed Jamil Bin Ahmed Mulla, Minister of Communications and Information Technology, on the occasion of SV's attaining third place for the distinction of its website on the internet. The ceremony was held at the King Faisal Hall at the Intercontinental Hotel in Riyadh on 12th December, 2008. The Judges decision was based on Saudi Arabian Airlines distinguishing itself on many levels, including:

1. Aesthetic beauty and attraction
2. Ease of use and perusal
3. Provision of flight information, schedules and rates
4. Comprehensive provision of services electronically

The Ministry of Communication and Information Technology has started organizing the annual Digital Excellence Award in 2005. Its purpose is to concentrate on the inclusion of Arabic content on the internet and the encouragement of initiatives contributing to the enrichment of Arabic content on the internet, in addition to spreading awareness of the existence of such sites to the public in general.

SV fleet modernization 

Saudi Arabian Airlines (SV) has started updating its fleet as part of its plan to keep pace with the latest technological advances in the aviation industry. The first modernized Boeing B777 has already been unveiled, while the remaining 21 aircraft of the same model are scheduled to be renewed before long.

Mr. Khaled Almolhem, Director General, Saudi Arabian Airlines has recently inspected the first modified aircraft at King Abdul Aziz International Airport. The modifications include new passenger seats and entertainment systems, as well as the introduction of a new communications system that will allow passengers to use their cell phones on board the aircraft. "After we get all necessary licenses, passengers will soon be able to use their cellular phones and laptops during their journey," Mr. Almolhem said. H.E. added that it took the Airline's technicians nearly two months to install the new Aero Mobile system on the aircraft. VP Technical Services, Mr. Ali Abdullah Mila'at said that all seats on the modified Boeing have been replaced with newer ones of superior quality for passenger ease and comfort. "The new supple seats are covered with soft leather to ensure maximum comfort, especially when a passenger is sleeping," he said. Mr. Mila'at added that the aircraft's entire entertainment system has also been replaced. "The new entertainment system is more advanced and allows passengers to choose a variety of audio and video programs. All seats have been equipped with electrical outlets and memory card slots to give passengers a choice of uses for their personal computer devices," he said. Mr. Mila'at further noted that first class seats have been supplied with 15.4" screens, business class seats with 12.1" screens and guest class seats with 8.9" screens. "All are touch-operated and easy to use," he said.

(12.414) Scheduled and Additional Flights in Ramadan

The new operational plan for Saudi Arabian Airlines during the month of Ramadan includes 12,414 scheduled flights, in addition to a full network of local and international flights to help meet the increasing demand for traveling during this blessed month.

The passenger capacity for these flight can accommodates up to 1,191,798 seats, of which 4,071 flights that will transfer 867,931 Umra passengers to both King Abdul Aziz International Airport in Jeddah, and Prince Mohammed Bin Abdul Aziz International Airport in Madinah.
During the first week of August 2010, Saudi Arabian Airlines transferred 376,173 passengers through its local an international network. These entailed operating 159 scheduled flights from Cairo to transport 39,081 passengers, 94 flights from Dubai to transport 8,082, 32 flights from Beirut to transport 3,698 passengers, 27 flights from Paris to transport 2784 passengers, and 10 flights from Geneva to transport 2620 passengers.

Saudi Arabian Airlines operates 400 daily flights during the summer season, of which 295 are domestic flights and 145 are international flights. They represent 7 million passengers of its annual average of 19 million passengers.

Record growth in SV flights to India

Saudi Arabian Airlines (SV) has registered tremendous growth in the number of passengers carried on its flights to and from India. In the first six months of this year the national carrier transported (190,285) passengers to and from Jeddah, Riyadh, Dammam and Madinah to eight Indian destinations on (930) flights.

It is worth mentioning that Saudi Arabian Airlines carried (420,920) passengers on (2,016) flights in 2009.

Mumbai topped the list of Indian destinations by handling the largest number of passengers and flights in the past year. Saudi Arabian Airlines currently operates flights to the Indian cities of Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Chennai, Calicut, Kochi, Bangalore and Lucknow.

Saudi Arabian carries 6.5 million passengers‎

Saudi Arabian Airlines carried 6.5 million passengers on its domestic and ‎international flights since the introduction of the Amadeus passenger management ‎system in April 2010. The number of electronic tickets issued by the airline's offices ‎in the Kingdom and abroad reaches over 500,000 every month while ticket sales ‎through Sadad reached 650,000 until the beginning of August 2010. ‎

The Amadeus system sends more than 40,000 SMS messages to passengers daily to ‎inform them about the status of their reservations and change in flight timings. About ‎‎250,000 reservations have been made through the airline's website in July 2010 alone. ‎More than 73,000 passengers received their boarding passes through the website ‎during the same period. Saudi Arabian has become the fifth largest airline in the ‎world to provide these advanced electronic services to passengers. ‎There was seven percent increase in the number of reservations made through the ‎airline's Call Center during May-July 2010 as total reservations made through the ‎center reached 49 percent.

The Amadeus system helps the airline to make optimum‎utilization of available seats on its flights, reducing the percentage of delays and false ‎bookings.‎ Different payment options are one of the system's main features as each passenger can ‎select the best option he wants. It also provides a number of automatic services to ‎passengers to complete their travel procedures. The system is distinguished for its ‎international standards and is being used by a large number of major airlines in the ‎world. Amadeus links more than 120 websites of various airline companies with ‎Saudi Arabian's reservation system, giving the national carrier the flexibility to deal ‎with those airlines without any difficulty. It also helps continuous development of ‎passenger service systems.‎ By visiting Saudi Arabian's website, passengers will be able to select suitable flights ‎and prices, book their seats and purchase tickets through Sadad or credit card and take printout of his boarding pass. Amadeus has enabled the airline to serve various ‎categories of clients quickly and efficiently.‎

Saudi Airlines Strategic Plan

Saudi Arabian Airlines will increase the number of domestic and international flights as part of a strategic plan to improve services, achieve passenger satisfaction and meet competition, its Director General Mr. Khaled Al-Molhem said.

“We have already started implementing the first phase of the strategy at the beginning of this year by operating direct flights to some destinations, increasing flights between Jeddah and Riyadh and operating more flights to European cities,” he said.

Mr. Al-Molhem said the national carrier had begun bearing fruit of the strategic plan as the number of passengers it transported between the Kingdom and Europe rose by 20 percent to 168,300 in the first half of 2010 compared to the same period last year.

The plan’s second phase, which begins on Nov. 1, 2010 would witness unprecedented progress in operations between major Saudi cities. It will operate seven flights between Riyadh and Dammam daily, instead of five, reducing the gap between flights to two and a half hours.

“The number of daily flights between Jeddah and Dammam will be increased to eight on both sides, reducing the gap to two hours,” the director general said, adding that flights from the southern resort city of Abha to major Saudi cities would be increased from 103 to 124 flights weekly.

There will be 49 flights from Jeddah to Abha with seven flights daily while the number of flights between Riyadh and Abha will be increased to 56 with eight flights daily. Flights from Dammam to Abha will be increased from seven to 11 to meet growing demand.

The increase in flights comes after Saudi Arabian bought 82 new Airbus and Boeing aircraft. It has already received 23 Airbus planes including 20 A320s and A330s from the French manufacturer. The new planes have started operating flights to domestic and international destinations. By the end of this year, Saudi Arabian will receive 39 new Airbus planes.

Mr. Al-Molehm said flights between Jazan and other major cities would be increased from 52 to 67 weekly including 27 from Jeddah, 23 from Riyadh and seven from Dammam. Tabuk will have 23 flights from Jeddah and 22 from Riyadh weekly while Hail will have 16 flights from Jeddah and 14 from Riyadh. Baha will receive nine flights from Jeddah and 11 from Riyadh.

The DG emphasized the airline’s strategy to increase flights to Middle Eastern and Gulf destinations. Flights to Beirut will be increased from 11 to 17, Bahrain nine to 14, Doha six to 10, Amman 10 to 12, Sanaa five to nine and Aden from two to three weekly.

“During the strategic plan’s third phase that begins on March 27, 2011, passengers will enjoy substantial improvement in our services to East Asia. We’ll replace Boeing 747-300s with Boeing 777s,” he said.

Mr. Al-Molhem said Saudi Arabian has been operating 12,414 scheduled and additional flights to transport 2.19 million passengers during Ramadan. It has allocated 4,071 flights with 931,867 seats to King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah and Prince Muhammad Bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Madinah.