Saudi Airlines, the flag carrier of the country, was established in September 1945 with its headquarters in Jeddah. The airline's main operational base is located at King Abdulaziz International Airport, with secondary hubs at King Fahd International Airport in Dammam and King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh.

The airline operates both domestic and international scheduled flights, serving over 100 destinations across Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Europe, and North America. Saudi Airlines made history by becoming a member of the SkyTeam airline alliance on May 29, 2012, becoming the first Arab Gulf carrier to join one of the three major airline alliances.

History

In 1945, U.S. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt gifted a Douglas DC-3 aircraft to King Abdul Aziz Ibn Saudi. The airline initially operated from Al-Kandara Airport near Jeddah. It launched scheduled operations on the Jeddah-Riyadh-Hofuf-Dhahran route in March 1947, using five DC-3 aircraft. The airline's first international service was between Jeddah and Cairo, followed by routes to Beirut, Karachi, and Damascus in 1948.

In 1962, the airline took delivery of two Boeing 720s, making it the fourth Middle Eastern airline to operate jet aircraft, following Cyprus Airways and Middle East Airlines. On February 19, 1963, the airline officially registered as a company.

Development (2000s-2020s)

On October 8, 2000, Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud signed a contract to study the privatization of Saudi Airlines. The Saudi Government also indicated that the airline might lose its domestic services monopoly in 2005. Saudi began restructuring into Strategic Business Units (SBUs), which were later converted into separate companies in August 2007.

In a branding shift, the airline reverted to its English brand name, Saudia, from Saudi Arabian Airlines. By the end of 2012, Saudia had added 64 new jets to its fleet and later received eight Boeing 787-9 aircraft in 2015.

Rise of Saudia (2020s-Present)

In April 2012, the airline announced its use of the mobile app developed by the International Air Transport Association, allowing passengers to manage their travel information and documents digitally.

In December 2021, the airline engaged in discussions with major aircraft manufacturers Airbus and Boeing.

In April 2022, Saudia expanded its services to several new destinations, including Seoul, Beijing, Mykonos, Batumi, Barcelona, Malaga, Chicago, Bangkok, Entebbe, Kyiv, and Moscow. However, due to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, services to Kyiv were delayed. In July 2022, Saudia signed a contract with the Air Connectivity Programme to launch four new destinations: Tunis, Zurich, Kuala Lumpur, and Barcelona.

Sponsorships

Saudia served as the main sponsor of the Williams Formula One team from 1977 to 1984, a period during which Williams won the Constructors Championship twice. Additionally, Saudia was the main sponsor of the 2018 and 2019 Diriyah ePrix. In November 2022, Newcastle United announced Saudia as their official tour airline partner.