Saudi Arabia’s flynas has signed an agreement with Tibah Airports Operation Company to launch a new base at Madinah's Prince Mohammad Bin Abdulaziz International Airport (MED).

The move will see the LCC become the only Saudi carrier to operate four bases in the country. It expects to launch new domestic and international services from Madinah before the end of the year in line with the delivery of additional aircraft.

Flynas currently has three bases—at Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam—underpinning its network of more than 90 routes across 21 countries. The carrier operates 43 Airbus A320-family aircraft on its scheduled network, along with four A330s, which are used for religious pilgrimages. A further 92 aircraft are on firm order, and the fleet mix will include at least 10 A321XLRs.

Bander Almohanna, flynas CEO and managing director, says the new base will help to enhance the airline’s operational capabilities and diversify its international and domestic network. “The step is in accordance with our strategy for growth and expansion, and it confirms our confidence in the potential of the Saudi market and the ambitious national goals for the air transport sector,” he adds.

Almohanna says the expansion is also in line with the objectives of Saudi Arabia’s Pilgrim Experience Program, a strategy launched in 2019 to provide the opportunity for the largest possible number of Muslims to perform Hajj and Umrah by facilitating access to the Two Holy Mosques in Mecca and Madinah.

Flynas operates three domestic routes to MED at present, flying from its existing bases, as well as offering one international service to Cairo.

The airline is the third-largest provider of domestic connectivity in Saudi Arabia, with a 20% seat capacity share, OAG Schedules Analyser data shows. Saudia commands 54% of the market, followed by flyadeal on 25.7%.

In the international market, flynas has a 9.3% share of all departure seats available in September 2023—the second largest after Saudia’s 28.4% capacity share.