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Air Travel
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The national airline, Saudia, is the largest in the Middle East. |
During its development into a modern nation, Saudi Arabia has relied heavily upon air transport to surmount its vast distances. The Kingdom established its national airline, Saudia, in 1945 with a modest fleet of three DC-3s. As the company grew into a world-class airline, it also played a critical role in the Kingdom's development.
Today, Saudia is the 25th largest airline in the world and the largest in the Middle East. Its domestic flights serve cities throughout the Kingdom daily, and its international flights serve many destinations in the Middle East, Asia, Africa, Europe and North America. The number of passengers carried annually by Saudia has increased steadily in recent years, reaching 11.5 million in 1992. Similarly, the volume of freight transport reached 145,000 tons in the same year. In February 1994, Saudi Arabia announced its decision to purchase replacement aircraft for the Saudia fleet from Boeing Corp. and McDonnell-Douglas Corp.
The Kingdom has three international and 22 regional and local airports. The international airports include the new King Fahd International Airport in the Eastern Province. Located 22 miles northwest of Dammam, it can serve six million passengers each year. The 9.09 acre air cargo terminal is capable of handling 176,000 tons of freight per year. The airport will be further expanded, raising its passenger capacity to 14 million per year. by the year 2000. The Hajj Terminal at King Abdul Aziz International Airport in Jeddah was built exclusively to accommodate some of the two million Muslim pilgrims who perform the pilgrimage annually. Saudi Arabia has also expanded other air transport facilities to handle the burgeoning pilgrim traffic; for example, the Madinah airport, with an additional runway, and larger passenger and Hajj terminals. The King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh is one of the most modern in the Middle East. An industrial park has been established adjacent to the airport for the production of high technology, specialized parts for the aviation industry .
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