Riyadh, Saudi Arabia— Saudi Arabia vaults to the 13th position on the air connectivity index of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) in 2023, up from the 27th position in 2019.
In the ranking that includes over 200 countries, the Kingdom achieved a record rise by 14 places. It achieved its highest connectivity level by connecting to 131 destinations.
The IATA report comes more than two years after the Cabinet’s approval of the Civil Aviation Sector Strategy, which has contributed to supporting air transportation industry at the local, regional, and international levels.
The kingdom seeks to create a global investment environment and design the future of the aviation sector in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia so that it ranks first on the Middle East region and raises its contribution to gross domestic product (GDP).
Meanwhile, the Kingdom also focuses on turning itself into a logistical hub that links three continents and an international center for air transport and freight.
The latest advancement on the connectivity index is an extension of record numbers achieved by the Kingdom with regard to economic and social development.
Such achievements include the Kingdom’s scoring of 94.4% in the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) safety audit report and ranking 7th among Group of Twenty (G20) members in aviation safety.
Moreover, Saudi air traffic achieved 42% growth in the number of passengers during the first four months of 2023 compared to the same period last year.
Accordingly, the number of travelers rose to 35.8 million in the first four months of this year, up from 25.3 million during the same period of 2022.