Emirates and Saudi air carrier, flynas, have signed an expanded two-way interline partnership on the sidelines of Arabian Travel Market (ATM) taking place at Dubai World Trade Centre, with plans to open up connections and more travel choices for the airline’s customers via Dubai.

The MoU was signed at ATM by Adnan Kazim, Emirates’ Deputy President and Chief Commercial Officer, and Bander Almohanna, Group CEO & Managing Director of flynas, in the presence of Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive, Emirates Airline & Group, and flynas Chairman Ayed Al Jeaid, along with other senior representatives from both airlines.

Emirates’ current interline with flynas provides its customers with enhanced connectivity via its four gateways – Riyadh, Jeddah, Medinah and Dammam – to over 15 domestic points in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

It also includes the convenience of single ticket itineraries with onwards booking and baggage transfers.

With the expansion of the interline to a bilateral arrangement, flynas customers can connect across any of Emirates’ gateways in the Kingdom to a select roster of onward destinations on the airline’s network in the Far East, West Asia & Indian Ocean and Europe, via Dubai.

Bander Almohanna, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of flynas, said: “With the expansion of the interline to a bilateral arrangement, flynas travellers can connect to a select roster of Emirates' onward destinations on the airline’s network in the Far East, West Asia & Indian Ocean and Europe, via Dubai.

“We are quite pleased to offer more choices to our customers through Emirates' wide network. Once the expanded interline partnership is activated, customers will be able to book their travel on the flynas website, through online travel agencies as well as with local travel agents."

Adnan Kazim, Deputy President and Chief Commercial Officer, Emirates Airline, said: “We are proud to expand our interline agreement with flynas. The existing flynas links provide our customers with an array of possibilities to travel smoothly across the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in particular to business hubs and emerging leisure and cultural destinations.

“Connecting our networks solidifies our commitment to offering travellers in Saudi Arabia access to even more destinations and helping them benefit from unique travel options. The expansion of our interline agreement demonstrates our commitment to Saudi Arabia, and this is only the beginning. We look forward to exploring more opportunities to widen the scope of our partnership in the future.”

Once the expanded interline partnership is activated, customers will be able to book their travel on the flynas website, through online travel agencies as well as with local travel agents.

Emirates has been working with partners in Saudi Arabia to support the kingdom’s Vision 2030 plans, which includes efforts to attract tourists and promote tourism destinations.

In 2022, Emirates signed an MoU with the Saudi Tourism Authority (STA) to boost inbound tourism into Saudi Arabia and attract new segments of travellers across the airline’s extensive global network. – TradeArabia News Service