Saudi Arabian Airlines (Saudia) has inaugurated its new offices in Los Angeles, US, which will serve the western region of the country.

Sulaiman Al-Hamdan, president of the General Authority of Civil Aviation of Saudi Arabia and Saudia’s chairman, cut the ceremonial ribbon along with Dr Faisal Al-Sudairy, the Saudi Consul General in Los Angeles, and Engineer Saleh Al-Jasser, Saudia’s director general.

The new premises will include Saudia’s city ticket office, sales office and the training and scholarship office for the US western region.

Saudia started flying to Los Angeles in March 2014, providing the only non-stop flights from the US West Coast to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, continuing on to the capital city of Riyadh.

It provides much needed air transport service for Saudi students, diplomatic personnel, pilgrims visiting the holy cities of Makkah and Madinah, business travellers, American expatriates and their families as well as passengers who travel beyond Saudi Arabia to Saudia’s global network of more than 80 worldwide destinations.

Saudia flies three times a week to and from Los Angeles, which will be increased to five flights weekly by June of this year. It operates the latest B777-300 with flatbed seats in First Class and provides the latest in in-flight entertainment along with world-class in-flight cuisine.

Starting with one DC-3 Dakota aircraft in 1945, the gift of US President Franklin Roosevelt to King Abdul Aziz, the founding King of Saudi Arabia, Saudia now has more than 120 modern aircraft, with plans to further increase its fleet to at least 200 by the year 2020. - TradeArabia News Service