Flynas Announces 7 New Destinations, 4th Operations Base in Saudi Arabia

Madinah Airport. (Madinah Airport)
Madinah Airport. (Madinah Airport)
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Flynas Announces 7 New Destinations, 4th Operations Base in Saudi Arabia

Madinah Airport. (Madinah Airport)
Madinah Airport. (Madinah Airport)

Flynas, the national airline and the leading low-cost carrier in the Middle East and the world, added seven new routes to its network from its new operations base at Madinah Airport, starting December 2023.

Flynas is the only carrier with four operations bases across the Kingdom.

The new announcement comes within the Pilgrims Experience Program (PEP) objectives to facilitate access to the Two Holy Mosques and the National Civil Aviation Strategy.

It would enable national air carriers to contribute to connecting the Kingdom with 250 international destinations and to reach 330 million passengers and to attract 100 million tourists annually by 2030.

Managing Director of Tibah Airports Operations Company Sofiene Abdessalem recently signed a partnership agreement with CEO and Managing Director of flynas Bander al-Mohanna to launch the carrier’s newest operations base at Madinah Airport.

The base aims to diversify and increase international and domestic destinations to and from Madinah Airport. Flynas has three other operations centers in Riyadh, Jeddah, and Dammam.

The company will launch two domestic routes from Madinah to Abha and Tabuk and five international routes to Dubai, Amman, Baghdad, Istanbul, and Ankara to be operated alongside the other four existing routes from Madinah to Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam, and Cairo.

The additions will bring the number of routes operated by flynas from Madinah to 11.

Mohanna said the launch of the new operations center coincides with taking delivery of new aircraft to further upscale flynas fleet.

"The operations from our new operations base will start with two aircraft as a first stage, and we are planning to increase our operations and fleet size and to launch more destinations to achieve our strategy ‘We Connect the World to the Kingdom’," said Mohanna.

He noted that the company aims to enhance the guests' experience with direct flights to many destinations in and outside Saudi Arabia, creating new job opportunities and increasing Saudization in the Aviation industry.

Flynas connects more than 70 domestic and international destinations with more than 1,500 weekly flights and has flown more than 60 million passengers since its launch in 2007 to reach 165 domestic and global goals, in line with the objectives of Vision 2030.



IMF Approves Third Review of Sri Lanka's $2.9 Bln Bailout

Peter Breuer, Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF along with Katsiaryna Svirydzenka, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF and Martha Tesfaye Woldemichael, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF, attend a press conference organized by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Thilina Kaluthotage
Peter Breuer, Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF along with Katsiaryna Svirydzenka, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF and Martha Tesfaye Woldemichael, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF, attend a press conference organized by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Thilina Kaluthotage
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IMF Approves Third Review of Sri Lanka's $2.9 Bln Bailout

Peter Breuer, Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF along with Katsiaryna Svirydzenka, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF and Martha Tesfaye Woldemichael, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF, attend a press conference organized by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Thilina Kaluthotage
Peter Breuer, Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF along with Katsiaryna Svirydzenka, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF and Martha Tesfaye Woldemichael, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka at the IMF, attend a press conference organized by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Thilina Kaluthotage

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved the third review of Sri Lanka's $2.9 billion bailout on Saturday but warned that the economy remains vulnerable.
In a statement, the global lender said it would release about $333 million, bringing total funding to around $1.3 billion, to the crisis-hit South Asian nation. It said signs of an economic recovery were emerging, Reuters reported.
In a note of caution, it said "the critical next steps are to complete the commercial debt restructuring, finalize bilateral agreements with official creditors along the lines of the accord with the Official Creditor Committee and implement the terms of the other agreements. This will help restore Sri Lanka's debt sustainability."
Cash-strapped Sri Lanka plunged into its worst financial crisis in more than seven decades in 2022 with a severe dollar shortage sending inflation soaring to 70%, its currency to record lows and its economy contracting by 7.3% during the worst of the fallout and by 2.3% last year.
"Maintaining macroeconomic stability and restoring debt sustainability are key to securing Sri Lanka's prosperity and require persevering with responsible fiscal policy," the IMF said.
The IMF bailout secured in March last year helped stabilize economic conditions. The rupee has risen 11.3% in recent months and inflation disappeared, with prices falling 0.8% last month.
The island nation's economy is expected to grow 4.4% this year, the first increase in three years, according to the World Bank.
However, Sri Lanka still needs to complete a $12.5 billion debt restructuring with bondholders, which President Anura Kumara Dissanayake aims to finalize in December.
Sri Lanka will enter into individual agreements with bilateral creditors including Japan, China and India needed to complete a $10 billion debt restructuring, Dissanayake said.
He won the presidency in September, and his leftist coalition won a record 159 seats in the 225-member parliament in a general election last week.