Saudi Arabia plans to launch second national airline

Quantum Commodity Intelligence - Saudi Arabia plans to launch a second national airline as part of the kingdom's strategy to diversify from oil.

The creation of another flag carrier would catapult Saudi Arabia into the fifth rank globally in terms of air transit traffic, official state media reported this week, without giving details on when and how the airline would be created.

Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said the new airline would complement the broader strategy of making the kingdom a global logistics hub, which includes the development of ports, rail and road networks, and a new airport n Riyadh. 

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, state agency SPA reported.

State-owned Saudi Arabian Airlines is currently the biggest carrier in the kingdom.