Flynas, located in Saudi Arabia, announced that its board of directors had approved the establishment of local units in two more countries as part of a strategy to become the Middle East’s largest cheap airline and one of the world’s top five airlines. According to a Bloomberg statement, Flynas, headquartered in Riyadh, said it would seek so-called Air Operator Certificates in two unspecified nations as it seeks to quadruple the scale of its activities.
Saudi Arabia is investing heavily in the aviation industry as part of the country’s effort to reduce its reliance on oil and become one of the world’s top vacation destinations by 2030. The plans include a new airport in Riyadh and a new airline, both of which will be owned by the kingdom’s formidable sovereign wealth fund.
As part of the drive, Flynas intends to increase its existing jet orders to 250, and previously stated that it was evaluating widebody models such as the Boeing Co 787 and Airbus SE A350, in addition to its present fleet of Airbus SE narrow-body jets. Flynas, which began operations as Nas Air in 2007, is partially controlled by Kingdom Holding, the investment vehicle of Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal. Flynas increased passenger counts by 91% to 8.7 million in 2022, while flight numbers increased by 45% to 66,000.
