NATIONAL Air Services (NAS), a leading private aviation services company in the Middle East, intends to launch a low cost carrier in Saudi Arabia as part of its business development strategy.
The fully Saudi-owned company said that it has officially submitted an application to the Saudi Arabia General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) for the licence to operate low cost airline network in the Kingdom.
“Being the first privately owned aviation company licensed in the Saudi market, NAS has been set to help develop the Saudi and regional aviation industry infrastructure,” said Ayed Al Jeaid, chairman board of directors of NAS. “Targeting different customer groups, NAS has been established to be a customer-centric company providing specialised products and solutions designed to meet the market needs and to deliver profitable return on shareholders’ equity.”
Since inception in 1999, NAS has witnessed significant growth in its operations across the region. It has flown over 18,000 flights and has 33,000 hours on its fleet with total annual flying hours reaching 11,000 in 2005.
Similarly, its fleet has remarkably grown over the years. NAS now operates 47 aircraft from two aircraft in 1999. And it plans to increase the number of its aircraft to 98 over the next five years.
“We are meant to fill in the gap and meet the increasing needs of travellers on short hauls including flight frequency, seat availability and convenience of travel with uncompromised quality service and safety standards in the highly competitive travel arena,” said Al Jeaid. “We are gearing up to win one of the licenses and start low cost carrier operation and to this end we have entered into strategic alliances with world-class allies with proven track records in their relevant field to ensure genuine technology and know-how transfer.”