One ticket, smoother travel: Saudia and Air India ink codeshare deal for India–Saudi routes

Saudia, the national flag carrier of Saudi Arabia, and Air India signed a codeshare agreement on Wednesday, which will come into effect from February. 

The partnership aims to improve connectivity, expand network access, and offer more flight options for travellers across tourism, business, and other segments.

Under the agreement, guests of both airlines will benefit from streamlined booking and ticketing, single-itinerary travel, smoother connections, and baggage check-through to their final destination.

Through the codeshare, Saudia’s guests will be able to access several major Indian cities via Mumbai and Delhi. These include Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Kochi, Hyderabad, Chennai, Lucknow, Jaipur, and over 15 additional destinations through interline arrangements.

Air India guests travelling to Jeddah or Riyadh will get seamless onward connections on Saudia-operated flights to cities such as Dammam, Abha, Gassim, Gizan, Madinah, and Taif. 

The addition of codeshare flights on the Jeddah–Riyadh route will also allow travellers to arrive in one city and depart from another. Connections to select international destinations will be added later this year.

Ibrahim Al-Omar, Director General of Saudia Group, said, “The codeshare agreement with Air India marks a strategic step forward, given both airlines’ long histories and their shared commitment to increasing connectivity within their home markets and between their countries, while offering guests broader access to more destinations through simplified travel procedures that elevate the overall travel experience.”

He added, "Saudia's presence in India spans over 60 years, during which we’ve proudly served a wide range of guests and helped foster stronger ties between our two nations. Saudia Arabia is a great place to visit, and with seamless e-visas, stopover visas, and also visa-on-arrival for eligible Indian passport holders, it has never been easier to visit the Kingdom.”

Calling Saudi Arabia a key Middle East market, Air India CEO and Managing Director Campbell Wilson said, “We are happy to be partnering with Saudia to provide greater access to the large Indian diaspora spread across Saudi Arabia as well as to open up the Kingdom’s rapidly evolving and diverse tourism offerings and remarkable destinations to holidaymakers from India.”

After its privatisation in 2022, Air India expanded its global alliance network. The airline now has 24 codeshare partnerships and close to 100 interline agreements with airlines across the world, giving customers access to more than 800 destinations globally.