JEDDAH: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman has ordered that Saudi Arabian Airlines should resume flights to Sharm El-Sheikh to support Egypt’s tourism sector.
A local Saudia official told Arab News “the flights will be resumed with immediate effect.” The announcement was first made on Saudi television on Thursday.
Most airlines have delayed the resumption of flights to Sharm El-Sheikh amid continuing security concerns at the Egyptian airport after a Metrojet Airbus A321 reportedly blew up mid-air, killing all 224 people on board.
The official said “we are completely comfortable with the operation of flights from the Kingdom to Egyptian destinations, including Sharm El-Sheikh.”
King Salman’s announcement came after his meeting with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi here on Wednesday. Saudia will be one of the first carriers to start flying to the Egyptian resort city after the airline tragedy.
The king said he was confident that the Egyptian government and military under the leadership of El-Sisi would maintain security in the country, according to reports.
El-Sisi on Wednesday also promised a transparent probe and cautioned against hasty conclusions over what brought down the Metrojet Airbus over Egypt’s Sinai peninsula.
Saudia operates four weekly flights each from Riyadh and Jeddah. The flights from Riyadh are on Saturday, Sunday, Wednesday and Thursday, while the Jeddah flights are on Saturday, Monday, Tuesday and Thursday.
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