Saudia (SV, Jeddah International) is considering acquiring turboprop aircraft as part of plans to extend its coverage to smaller towns and city-centres throughout the kingdom. The country's General Authority for Civil Aviation (GACA) has already unveiled an ambitious multi-billion dollar plan to renovate and expand Saudi Arabia's twenty-six existing airfields in addition to building more in the coming twenty years.

To that end, airline Director General, Saleh bin Nasser Al Jasser, told Gulf News that Saudia is looking at developing the south-western city of Abha into a secondary hub after Jeddah International. In the event the project proceeds, Abha would cater to the southern sections of the country, he said.

Aside from Jeddah, Saudia maintains bases in Dammam, Madinah, and Riyadh all of which offer coverage of the central and northern portions of the country. Start-up Nesma Airlines (Saudi Arabia) (NSS, Hail) has also announced plans to use a fleet of ATR72-600s in developing the north-western town of Hail into a central hub for flights across the northern part of Saudi Arabia.

Saudia's fleet currently consists of an all-jet operation with the E170 and A320-200 its smallest types.

The carrier recently unveiled its flyadeal (F3, Jeddah International) budget subsidiary which it expects to launch during the middle of next year. The carrier will operate both domestic and regional flights using a fleet that could number fifty aircraft by 2020. Al Jasser said the aircraft, either A320neo or B737, would be leased from either external firms or from Saudia itself.