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00:00This program is brought to you by Ayat.
00:26Welcome to a new episode of Mawdu'iyah.
00:30In 2021, the Saudi Air Lines Programme was launched to support the growth of tourism
00:38by strengthening the air connection between the Kingdom and the world countries,
00:42by developing the current and possible air routes and connecting the Kingdom to new destinations.
00:48The programme also works to achieve integration between tourism and aviation systems
00:54by connecting business owners and relevant parties
00:58to achieve the national strategy for tourism
01:02and to enhance the Kingdom's image as a world-leading tourist destination
01:06in the field of air connection.
01:08Tonight, we will learn about the program's plans and strategy
01:12with its Executive President, Mr. Majid Khan.
01:15Welcome to tonight's episode of Mawdu'iyah and thank you for being here.
01:25Thank you.
01:46Thank you very much.
01:47As you said, the programme was established in 2021
01:52and if the programme was established according to the national strategy for tourism
01:58and the national strategy for travel,
02:02it is incumbent upon us to increase the number of tourists by 2030
02:08when 70 million will be the number of international tourists.
02:13And we know full well that in tourism and aviation,
02:19if we have direct access or direct connection,
02:24it makes it easier to reach the final destination.
02:28And we intend to develop this development
02:31by having a direct air connection.
02:34We see that the first is from Jeddah and Cairo with 5 million seats annually
02:39and the second is between Riyadh and Dubai with 4,000 seats.
02:42What does this mean?
02:43This means that the trips that we want are connected to other places in the world
02:49and through the direct air connection,
02:53we can strengthen the markets.
02:56For this reason, we established the Air Connection Programme
03:00in order to establish a direct route between the international markets
03:05and not only between Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam and Medina,
03:10which are the four main airports,
03:12but also at the level of the 29 airports in the Kingdom.
03:18Yes, we are now talking about three years since the programme was established.
03:24What are the most important points that are considered today
03:27or as achievements of Mr. Majid to achieve the goals
03:32that were achieved during the three years?
03:36I mean, when we look three years back,
03:39when we look at what was the situation three years ago
03:42and to highlight some of the achievements that were achieved,
03:46this is represented by the main strategies of FlyNAS, Flydeal and Saudi
03:52which are the airlines, in addition to Zerzeh,
03:55which are among the local airlines.
03:58And we know that they have more than 300 airlines
04:04and will work to increase the number of their airlines.
04:08Therefore, this can help reduce the number of tourists coming to the Kingdom.
04:14In addition, for the first time,
04:16China is connecting with Chinese airlines from Beijing to Riyadh.
04:26This is a good thing for the connection from Shanghai to Riyadh.
04:32In addition to flights from Beijing to Riyadh.
04:35So, we are talking about three airlines.
04:38As for the European market, it is very important for us.
04:43Etarways will start direct flights to Jeddah and Riyadh
04:48starting from its location in Rome.
04:50And this will help us not only attract Italian tourists to the Kingdom,
04:56but also American and Brazilian tourists
05:00because Etarways has a wide network to North and South America.
05:05Finally, Eurowings, an airline from Germany,
05:11will start direct flights between Berlin and Jeddah
05:15and between Cologne and Jeddah in the next phase of this year.
05:21As for the number, what does that mean?
05:24This year, we were able to attract four airlines
05:29during these four months.
05:31This will help us strengthen the number of tourists coming to the Kingdom.
05:38This leads us to the question, Mr. Majid,
05:40since we are talking about China's entry as an important line for the Kingdom.
05:45What are the criteria for choosing a destination
05:50and starting the connection with it as airlines
05:54or even for airlines?
05:59I mean, we are...
06:01I always say that we don't select a carrier,
06:05but we would like to choose a carrier
06:08but other than that, I think it is very important
06:12to know how to deal with any airline.
06:15We were talking about airlines with low cost
06:20and they don't mean wide distances.
06:22I don't think we can understand this model here
06:26by looking at any kind of criteria and applying it to all airlines.
06:30In fact, we look at every situation
06:32and we look at what all airline companies offer.
06:35When we look at airlines with low cost,
06:39we know that they are looking for effectiveness,
06:42for the cost of the flight,
06:44in addition to the incentives that are essential
06:47and allow them to lower the cost of operating marketing
06:51and the thing that allows them to start well.
06:54So, as we know, the demand is high,
06:57the supply is low, especially in the case of airlines.
07:01We know that the supply is low, especially in the case of airlines.
07:06This means that the supply is currently suffering
07:11and this is due to the way of dealing
07:14with a competitive market like the Kingdom.
07:17But to what extent today,
07:19during crises and wars,
07:22the strategy of the plans is usually repeated, Mr. Majid,
07:26and are we facing a change in the paths
07:30during these crises that may affect the program in general?
07:35I mean, aviation has always been a fragile sector
07:44and what we are facing today is not only a fragile sector,
07:47but also a dynamic sector.
07:49Of course, two days cannot be the same
07:52when it comes to airports.
07:55We can talk about a number of crises,
07:58wars, tensions, Corona,
08:00and we have to adapt to the intense situation every day.
08:04I don't think we're going to change our goals,
08:07which is clear,
08:09but we have to find new ways.
08:12As I said before,
08:14when we talk about war,
08:16war is a major problem, of course,
08:19but the Kingdom is a safe country
08:23that provides security for tourists.
08:26If we look at the movement between Europe and Asia in 2019,
08:31there were about 140 million travellers between Asia and Europe
08:37and only half of them had a single stop.
08:43So a large part of them had three stops in the Middle East,
08:48in addition to Istanbul.
08:50What does that mean?
08:52That means that when the supply gets back to the supply again,
08:56when the supply gets back to the supply again,
08:59when the supply gets back to the supply again,
09:02when the supply gets back to the supply again,
09:05we are in a new way of adapting.
09:10We are a new alternative.
09:12We are a safe place.
09:14If you have the same goal in Southern Europe,
09:17you would like to explore new locations.
09:20So for the airlines,
09:22we have about half the population in the Kingdom.
09:27So what does that mean for the airlines operating in the Kingdom?
09:32So what does that mean for the airlines operating in the Kingdom?
09:37It is un-contested.
09:39We have a market that does not confront any competition.
09:44Because we are un-contested,
09:46because we are un-touched,
09:48because we are safe.
09:50And as I said before,
09:52most airlines go through the main locations in the area.
10:00So it allows all the airlines that go to the area
10:05to simply get a competitive advantage.
10:09Now, I would argue that these things do not affect us
10:13in the short term,
10:15nor in the long term.
10:17When airlines are assigned to travel from Europe to Asia,
10:22they cannot, of course, travel through the Russian airspace.
10:26I am talking about the European airspace.
10:29And this is because, of course,
10:31it is supposed to open doors to new markets for tourism,
10:38such as the Saudi markets.
10:40So what is the number of countries that allow this?
10:45We have the Red Sea, which is the new Maldives.
10:48If you want tourism in the mountains,
10:50we have this possibility.
10:52We have, of course, historical sites.
10:54We have cultural sites.
10:56We have short distances.
10:58And we were doing it in terms of cost,
11:01in addition to an un-touched market.
11:05And we are the hidden gem.
11:09We are the destination for the tourism sector.
11:13I hope you will stay with us, Mr. Majid Khan,
11:15CEO of Al-Rabt Al-Jawi.
11:17We will talk about the challenges of opening new areas
11:21and also about the role of the program
11:24related to the main airports,
11:27and its activities after the break.
11:52This program is sponsored by
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12:25Welcome again.
12:26We continue our conversation tonight with Mr. Majid Khan,
12:29CEO of Al-Rabt Al-Jawi.
12:32Mr. Majid, welcome again.
12:34You were talking to me before the break
12:36about some of the preferential features.
12:38Today, what are the types of these features
12:40that airlines may have when opening new areas
12:44or even for countries?
12:46Do they differ from one country to another?
12:50I mean, when we look at the Saudi market, of course,
12:53as I mentioned earlier,
12:55we have a competitive market.
12:57We have a geographical location
12:59that forms a link between the East and the West,
13:02between the North and the South.
13:04And of course, we provide a good price
13:07for the markets.
13:09So, we are dealing with important partners,
13:12and we know that by and large,
13:14we know that this can bring
13:19to some markets.
13:21Recently, for example,
13:23GACA has signed an agreement with Poland,
13:27and this allows any point in Poland
13:31and any location in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,
13:35and this directly helps Al-Rabt Al-Jawi program
13:39because when we go to the airlines,
13:42we highlight the safety of traveling to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
13:46compared to the competition.
13:48And if the two airlines are not available,
13:51it is not possible for the airlines
13:53to carry out their flights
13:55that easily.
13:57I'm always mentioning Scandinavia as an example.
14:00I mean, it's one of the examples
14:02that we see great opportunities
14:04for markets like Scandinavia,
14:06but in terms of the two airlines,
14:08a small number of flights
14:10can be carried out from one location
14:12to another.
14:14So, a market like Poland
14:16or a market like Saudi Arabia,
14:18which has about 50 million people,
14:20which, of course,
14:22opens up a lot of space
14:24in front of the Polish and Saudi airlines
14:26to work from different locations
14:28in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
14:30and from Poland.
14:32And so, the opening of the airspace
14:34creates new opportunities for us,
14:36and this helps us
14:38to be able to carry out
14:40our flights
14:42from one location
14:44to another.
14:46So, it's a new opportunity
14:48for the Kingdom
14:50in addition to the fact
14:52that these new ways
14:54do not only attract tourists,
14:56but they also create opportunities
14:58for exporting companies,
15:00as well as opportunities
15:02for business projects,
15:04cultural integration,
15:06and creating new job opportunities.
15:08And that is definitely
15:10a new way to open the door
15:12to new markets,
15:14and this is beneficial
15:16for the Kingdom's economy.
15:18But what are the challenges
15:20facing the Kingdom
15:22to open the airspace,
15:24Mr. Majid?
15:26The Kingdom has faced
15:28many crises,
15:30starting with the coronavirus crisis,
15:32the wars between Russia and Ukraine,
15:34and many other crises.
15:36What is the biggest challenge
15:38facing the Kingdom
15:40to open the airspace?
15:44I mean, in terms of opening
15:46the skies,
15:48as I mentioned earlier,
15:50by opening the airspace,
15:52we might not be able
15:54to face some challenges
15:56facing the Kingdom.
15:58This is something
16:00that we need to work on.
16:02We are naturally in need
16:04to open our airspace.
16:06I will give an example
16:08of that in Europe.
16:10By opening the airspace,
16:12this encourages the markets,
16:14and when the markets become
16:16encouraged, this helps
16:18to lower prices.
16:20And of course,
16:22this is not the main problem.
16:24The problem is that we have
16:26limited capabilities
16:28compared to the size of the country.
16:30We have 29 airports in the Kingdom,
16:32and we have 250 aircraft
16:34from local airlines,
16:36and we have strategic partners.
16:38We are in agreement
16:40with them,
16:42but we also need
16:44airlines,
16:46and they can
16:48be the ones
16:50that can help to grow
16:52our inbound tourism.
16:54But to answer
16:56the question about challenges,
16:58I can say
17:00that the problem is
17:02not just
17:04in the land market.
17:06The problem is
17:08the fact that we need
17:10local airlines.
17:12We need to open
17:14the airspace,
17:16and the airspace
17:18needs to be open
17:20to the public.
17:22We have many advantages
17:24in my opinion.
17:26We have many advantages
17:28in the international markets,
17:30short-term or long-term, but perhaps in return, I would say that the new airport in mind,
17:40I wouldn't say the new King Salman airport, which will be ready in the coming years,
17:47will have a positive impact on the air-link policy because it will save some outside
17:55space, some positive, I call it positive tasks, positive challenges, but we are talking about
18:01the many challenges that we faced, that the speed of the air-link policy is very, very
18:07high, and we need to accelerate from the airport in Riyadh, but we have millions of passengers
18:15in Riyadh, and we will have a positive impact on the King Salman airport because it will
18:21have the ability to accommodate hundreds of millions, which means that we know how to
18:27develop the current airlines, and so we will be using additional airlines to increase the
18:33size of these planes. So I think that this is probably the main challenge in addition
18:39to the import, and I think that we have all the goals that we set according to the national
18:45tourism policy and the national policy, and we are on the right track.
18:53And this leads us to the question, so what are the targeted markets? I mean, we are talking
18:57now about the international King Salman airport and the main plan that we started hearing
19:01about, as well as the international Red Sea airport. What are the most important markets
19:07now according to these projects and these plans that you are focusing on in the coming
19:13period, Mr. Majed?
19:21Sure, our first priority is, of course, I mean, we have no hidden proofs. I mean, that's
19:27obviously GCC, the role of GCC. We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other
19:33countries in the region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other countries
19:39in the region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other countries in the
19:45region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other countries in the region.
19:51We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other countries in the region. We are just
19:57learning to see a lot of the role of other countries in the region. We are just learning
20:01to see a lot of the role of other countries in the region. We are just learning to see
20:07a lot of the role of other countries in the region. We are just learning to see a lot
20:13of the role of other countries in the region. We are just learning to see a lot of the
20:19role of other countries in the region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role
20:25of other countries in the region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role of
20:31other countries in the region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other
20:37countries in the region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other countries
20:43in the region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other countries in the
20:49region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other countries in the region.
20:55We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other countries in the region. We are just
21:01learning to see a lot of the role of other countries in the region. We are just learning
21:07to see a lot of the role of other countries in the region. We are just learning to see
21:13a lot of the role of other countries in the region. We are just learning to see a lot
21:19of the role of other countries in the region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role
21:25of other countries in the region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other
21:31countries in the region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other countries
21:37in the region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other countries in the
21:43region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other countries in the region.
21:49We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other countries in the region. We are just
21:55learning to see a lot of the role of other countries in the region. We are just learning
22:01to see a lot of the role of other countries in the region. We are just learning to see
22:07a lot of the role of other countries in the region. We are just learning to see a lot
22:13of the role of other countries in the region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role
22:19of other countries in the region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other
22:25countries in the region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other countries
22:31in the region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other countries in the
22:37region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other countries in the region.
22:43We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other countries in the region. We are just
22:49learning to see a lot of the role of other countries in the region. We are just learning
22:55to see a lot of the role of other countries in the region. We are just learning to see
23:01a lot of the role of other countries in the region. We are just learning to see a lot
23:07of the role of other countries in the region. We are just learning to see a lot of the
23:13role of other countries in the region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role
23:19of other countries in the region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other
23:25countries in the region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other countries
23:31in the region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other countries in the
23:37region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other countries in the region.
23:43We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other countries in the region. We are just
23:49learning to see a lot of the role of other countries in the region. We are just learning
23:55to see a lot of the role of other countries in the region. We are just learning to see
24:01a lot of the role of other countries in the region. We are just learning to see a lot
24:07of the role of other countries in the region. We are just learning to see a lot of the
24:13role of other countries in the region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role
24:19of other countries in the region. We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other
24:25countries in the region.
24:55We are just learning to see a lot of the role of other countries in the region. We are just
25:01learning to see a lot of the role of other countries in the region. We are just learning
25:07to see a lot of the role of other countries in the region. We are just learning to see
25:13a lot of the role of other countries in the region. We are just learning to see a lot