Air Connectivity Program targets 2.5M seats in 2025: CEO

Saudi Arabia’s Air Connectivity Program (ACP) successfully added over 700,000 seats to enhance the capacity of Umrah and religious visitation through Q1 2025, CEO Majid Khan said.

Speaking at the Umrah and Ziyarah Forum (UZF), organized by the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah at the King Salman International Convention Center in Madinah, he said that the aim is to secure 2.5 million seats by the end of 2025, with a focus on Umrah and religious visits and boosting air connectivity to Madinah from international markets, Khan said.

The initiative targets key source markets such as Europe, the Gulf region, CIS countries, and Indonesia, which aligns with the Kingdom’s National Tourism Strategy.

He revealed that the third route from Germany, connecting Stuttgart to Jeddah, will launch this year. Several new airlines have already joined the program for Umrah and visits from Europe, including Eurowings. Two new routes were launched last year from Berlin and Cologne to Jeddah.

French carrier Transavia will also begin operating new flights from Paris and Lyon to Jeddah. A new daily flight from London Gatwick Airport to Madinah is set to start in August, potentially adding up to 180,000 seats.

Earlier this year, the ACP announced adding 20 new routes and onboarding 12 airlines, including ITA Airways, British Airways, Eurowings, Transavia, and Wizz Air. They collectively contributed 1.5 million seats, Khan said.