With the creation of another flagship airline, Saudi Arabia will be ranked 5th in the world in terms of air traffic, according to state media. Under the leadership of Prince Mohammed, the Gulf’s largest Arab economy and largest country, is pushing for Saudi Arabia to increase its non-oil revenues to about 45 billion riyals ($12.00 billion) by 2030.
The state news agency SPA said that making the state a global logistics hub, including the development of ports, rail and road networks, would contribute 6% to 10% to the GDP of the transport and logistics sector. The goal of the comprehensive strategy is to keep Saudi Arabia on a global level.
An SPA report quoted Prince Mohammed as saying that the “comprehensive strategy aims to place Saudi Arabia as a global logistics hub connecting the three continents. This will help other sectors, such as tourism, Hajj and Umrah, achieve their national goals.”
An SPA report said the addition of another airline would increase the number of international destinations from Saudi Arabia to more than 250 and double air cargo capacity to more than 4.5 million tonnes. Along with the current flagship Saudi Arabian Airlines (Saudi Arabia), the kingdom has the smallest airline network in the region by volume. Saudi Arabia has suffered losses for years and, like its global counterparts, is affected by the corona virus.
Local media reported earlier this year that the country’s sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund, (PIF), without elaborating, was also planning to build a new airport in Riyadh as part of a new airline launch.
The fund is a key vehicle for boosting investment in Saudi Arabia, both at home and abroad, as the young prince, known in the West as MBS, pursues the state’s oil-rich economy through his Vision 2030 strategy is trying to diversify the oil dependent economy.
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