Swissport International AG has added Al-Ula to its growing network of airports in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, underlining the company’s ambitious and successful growth strategy in the Kingdom. Al-Ula, a rising international tourism hotspot, is already the sixth airport at which Swissport operates in Saudi Arabia.
Swissport has added Prince Abdul Majeed bin Abdulaziz International Airport at Al-Ula (ULH) to its growing network in Saudi Arabia. The first flight serviced by Swissport was a Royal Jordanian flight arriving from Queen Alia International Airport in Amman, Jordan. Swissport, the global leader in airport ground services and air cargo handling, will provide Royal Jordanian with passenger services and ramp handling at Al-Ula. Initially, Swissport will handle two weekly flights to and from Amman. The company expects flight volumes in Saudi Arabia to grow significantly as more airlines add destinations or increase frequencies in the thriving Kingdom.
“We are delighted to be able to offer our high-quality aviation services at Al-Ula and are honored by the trust our launching customer Royal Jordanian places in us,” says Chris Browne, CEO of Swissport Saudi Arabia.
Al-Ula is Swissport’s sixth airport in Saudi Arabia and further strengthens its position as the go-to service provider for airlines seeking a reliable long-term partner across the Arabian Peninsula and beyond. The start of operations at Al-Ula underlines Swissport’s strategic commitment to Saudi Arabia.
“Jointly with ASYAD Holding, our Saudi joint-venture partner, we have ambitious plans and are committed to contributing towards the Saudi Vision 2030, which will place the Kingdom’s aviation sector in the ivy-league of global aviation,“ says Dirk Goovaerts, Swissport’s CEO for Continental Europe, Middle East, and Africa.
Al-Ula is an ancient Arabian oasis and market town on the historic Incense Route that connected India and the Persian Gulf with the Levant and Europe. Today, it is one of the growing tourism destinations in Saudi Arabia, known for its landscape of cliffs, gorges and wadis and the contrast between this arid environment and the palm-covered oases. In 2023, Al-Ula airport welcomed more than two million passengers.
STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP WITH ASYAD HOLDING
Swissport has been present in Saudi Arabia since 2016 when it started its operations in Riyadh, Jeddah, and Dammam. The company has since continuously expanded its business and turned its presence from a greenfield start-up into an established business with a broad customer base of regional and international carriers.
Swissport and ASYAD Holding, a diversified, family-owned Saudi holding group with significant business activities in and outside Saudi Arabia across multiple sectors including aviation and infrastructure, recently joined forces to unlock the full growth potential in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The new strategic partnership underlines Swissport’s commitment to Saudi Arabia and is aimed at further accelerating the company’s growth in the largest economy in the Middle East. Swissport plans to further expand its Saudi presence in air cargo handling, airport ground services and in the lounge hospitality business, in particular also with Saudi carriers.
In 2023, Swissport in Saudi Arabia served 7.7m passengers (+49 per cent vs. 2022) and handled some 28,000 flights (+39 per cent vs. 2022). Currently, Swissport provides passenger services and ramp handling at six airports in Saudi Arabia: King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh (RUH), King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah (JED), King Fahd International Airport in Dammam (DMM), Prince Mohammad Bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Medina (MED), Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Al-Qassim (ELQ), and Prince Abdul Majeed bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Al-Ula (ULH).
In 2023, Swissport International AG provided best-in-class airport ground services for some 232 million airline passengers (2022: 186 million) and handled roughly 4.7 million tons of air freight (2022: 4.8 million) at 115 air cargo centers worldwide. Several of its warehouses have been certified for pharmaceutical logistics by IATA’s CEIV Pharma and by the British MHRA. At the end of December 2023, the world’s leader in airport ground services and air cargo handling, with currently around 60,000 employees, was active at 286 airports in 44 countries on six continents.
