Etihad Airways, will launch non-stop daily flights to Medina, the regional capital of the western Saudi Arabian province of Al Madinah and the second holiest city in Islam after the city of Mekkah. 

With the addition of the service, to start on February 1 2014, Etihad Airways will have 50 weekly flights to four destinations in Saudi Arabia which, along with Medina, include Dammam, Riyadh and Jeddah.   

Flights between Abu Dhabi and Medina will be operated by an Airbus A320 aircraft configured with 16 business class and 120 economy class seats, offering a total 1,904 seats per week. The services aim to cover the demand of pilgrim travelers and provide connectivity from Abu Dhabi.

James Hogan, Etihad Airways’ president and chief executive officer, said: “We are delighted to announce the introduction of Medina to the Etihad Airways’ global flight network. Saudi Arabia has always been a key market for Etihad Airways and Medina is therefore an important strategic destination for the airline. 

“Our new flights will cater to the Saudi Arabian population living in the UAE, as well as to the growing numbers of business and religious travellers looking to fly to the city. 

“The demand for the Umrah flights has always been very strong and with plans for the expansion of the Prophet Mohammed Mosque underway, we expect this demand to continue to grow in the future,”  Mr Hogan said. 

The new service to Medina will be Etihad Airways’ ninth destination in the Arabian Peninsula, joining Dammam, Jeddah, Riyadh, Kuwait, Bahrain, Doha, Muscat, and Sana’a.