Saudia, the national carrier of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is set to introduce an electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) jet service for transport passengers to the holy city of Makkah and new luxury resorts.
Saudia has already signed a historic deal to acquire a large number of electric aircraft, in order to enhance its efforts to move towards sustainable transportation and improve travel experience.
In July, the airline signed a deal with German firm Lilium NV to purchase 100 electric aircraft, marking the largest deal in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).
“The planes from Munich-based Lilium will provide direct links to hard-to-reach routes along the Red Sea coast, and will also transport Muslim pilgrims directly from Jeddah to Makkah, which has no airport,” the communications affairs manager Razan Shaker quoted by AFP on Sunday, October 13.
“Our strategy is to help connect locations and cities that do not have an airport, or that may be difficult to reach,” she added on the sidelines of the Global Logistics Forum held in Riyadh.
Plans include transporting pilgrims to the Fairmont Makkah Hotel at the Royal Clock Tower, near the Grand Mosque in Makkah, where “we are working on building a helipad,” Shaker said.
The Lilium plane, which can carry four to six people and travel up to 175 kilometres, is anticipated to begin deliveries to Saudi airlines in 2026.
Saudi Arabia aims to triple annual air traffic to 330 million passengers by the end of the decade, as part of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s Vision 2030 reform agenda.
