Dubai’s low cost airline flydubai has announced plans to launch three weekly flights to the Saudi agricultural city of Gassim, its 30th destination, starting from January 18.

The announcement comes days after Yanbu was declared flydubai’s  second destination in the Kingdom, the airline said in a statement.

Flight nos. FZ857/8 will fly on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays starting from January 18, the statement added.

With the commencement of operations to four new cities of Yerevan in Armenia, Abha in Saudi, Sulaimaniyah in Iraq and Ashgabat in Turkmenistan in less than a month, the launch of Gassim flights underscores flydubai’s commitment to offering passengers from and to Dubai with affordable and diverse travel options, said a top official.

"We are excited to add the city of Gassim to our growing network, making it our 30th destination. This further solidifies our commitment to the Saudi Arabian trade, tourism and commercial industries and caters to the growing demand for low cost air travel in the region and especially in the Kingdom," said flydubai CEO, Ghaith Al Ghaith.

Flight FZ857 departs from Dubai at 1305hrs, arriving in Gassim at 1435hrs local time. The return flight FZ858 takes off for Dubai Terminal 2 at 1520hrs, landing in Dubai at 1840hrs UAE time.

"Flydubai will be the first airline to serve Dubai and Gassim non-stop and we are confident that the demand for this route will increase considerably in the near future."

"Travelers from Gassim have had limited choices in terms of direct international flights and the introduction of this new route will benefit passengers with significant reduction in travel time as well as cost incurred," he noted.

According to him, the new Gassim route marks an important step for the airline as it continues strategic penetration into more markets in an effort to "bring more ease of travel and unmatched value for money in the region."

Flights from Dubai to Gassim begin on January 18 2011, on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.

The ticket prices start at Dh450 per person, including one piece of hand luggage weighing up to 7kg plus one small laptop bag or hand bag.  Flights from Gassim to Dubai start at SR475, including one piece of hand luggage weighing up to 7kg plus one small laptop bag or hand bag, the statement added.-TradeArabia News Service