777way From Pakistan, joined Dec 2005, 5164 posts, RR: 4 Posted (11 months 2 weeks 4 days 16 hours ago) and read 11414 times:
On 29 May Saudi Arabian Airlines officially reverted to their Saudia name used from 1972 to 1996, any idea why the carriers original title re-introduced in 1997 has been dropped? I know in Arabic they were still using Saudia throughout the period with the abbreviated title applied on aircraft.
Viscount724 From Switzerland, joined Oct 2006, 21465 posts, RR: 24 Reply 1, posted (11 months 2 weeks 4 days 13 hours ago) and read 10960 times:
Quoting 777way (Thread starter): On 29 May Saudi Arabian Airlines officially reverted to their Saudia name used from 1972 to 1996, any idea why the carriers original title re-introduced in 1997 has been dropped?
Believe Saudia is only a marketing/branding name. As far as I know the legal name remains Saudi Arabian Airlines.
I expect it's been reintroduced for marketing purposes since, in my experience, hardly anyone stopped using it when they tried to drop it. Shorter names are always better for branding purposes.
HiJazzey From Saudi Arabia, joined Sep 2005, 788 posts, RR: 1 Reply 5, posted (11 months 2 weeks 3 days 17 hours ago) and read 9632 times:
Quoting 777way (Thread starter): On 29 May Saudi Arabian Airlines officially reverted to their Saudia name used from 1972 to 1996, any idea why the carriers original title re-introduced in 1997 has been dropped? I know in Arabic they were still using Saudia throughout the period with the abbreviated title applied on aircraft.
In fact, in the 96 branding they only had the Saudia abbreviation, which BTW is how the noun adjunct "Saudi" in "Saudi Arabian Airlines" is pronounced in Arabic.
Ironically the classic branding had the full titles (as well as the abbreviation) in both languages.
As to the new branding. It seems they simplified things. The crescent and coat of arms is now in plain gold, without the blue gradient fill and such and so forth. The beige has been lightened to a creamy off-white as well it seems.
777way From Pakistan, joined Dec 2005, 5164 posts, RR: 4 Reply 6, posted (11 months 2 weeks 3 days 17 hours ago) and read 9587 times:
Ohhh the livery will look very bland, are ther any pics available? and what happens to now private Saudi Airlines Cargo do they also become Saudia Cargo or retain their own two year old revised title.
MaverickM11 From United States of America, joined Apr 2000, 15722 posts, RR: 47 Reply 7, posted (11 months 2 weeks 3 days 17 hours ago) and read 9346 times:
Why bother? Who is going to care how SV is branded? It's like rebranding the IRS.
Dreadnought From United States of America, joined Feb 2008, 7765 posts, RR: 22 Reply 10, posted (11 months 2 weeks 2 days 16 hours ago) and read 7976 times:
Quoting hotplane (Reply 9): First one in new standard livery:
Good to see they kept the rest of the livery - I think it's one of the best looking liveries around.
mogandoCI From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 11, posted (11 months 2 weeks 2 days 16 hours ago) and read 7887 times:
On a slightly off topic subject, has anyone actually tried transiting at Jeddah or Riyadh? Is it competitive with AMM/DXB/DOH, or is it rather intimidating ?
cedarjet From United Kingdom, joined May 1999, 7702 posts, RR: 55 Reply 14, posted (11 months 2 weeks 2 days 15 hours ago) and read 7716 times:
Wow, this is great. I always thought Saudia was a nice name and since 96 I continued to use it when referring to SV. I don't know why they ever got rid of it, esp in favour of bland "Saudi Arabian Airlines". The ending -a in Arabic makes it feminine which always appealed to me (see also: Alia, the old name for RJ, is a common girls' name in Arabic, and means Hope). SV rebranding as Saudia is the Arab version of JAL returning to the Tsuru - let's hope SV do well under their old and pretty name.
Quoting 777way (Reply 12): note they have removed the God Bless You decal from near cockpit which was applied on all the fleet including royal flight.
I found this quite charming but also quite out of sync. I'll miss it in a way, because the sentiment is a nice one, but coming from an instrument of the Saudi Arabian state was quite hypocritical, given it's abysmal human rights record, which makes Iran look like Norway.
fly Saha Air 707s daily from Tehran's downtown Mehrabad to Mashhad, Kish Island and Ahwaz
UK_Dispatcher From United Arab Emirates, joined Dec 2001, 2550 posts, RR: 33 Reply 15, posted (11 months 2 weeks 2 days 1 hour ago) and read 7250 times:
Quoting mogandoCI (Reply 11): On a slightly off topic subject, has anyone actually tried transiting at Jeddah or Riyadh? Is it competitive with AMM/DXB/DOH, or is it rather intimidating ?
I have never transferred SV-SV at JED, but have done the following:
JED
Nasair - Daallo Airlines
Saudia - Daallo Airlines
Etihad - Air India
RUH
Saudia-Saudia
RUH is easier than JED, but neither are as geared up for transfers as well as the other GCC Hubs you mentioned.
At JED, each of the 3 transfers I have done meant transferring airside to the non-Saudia terminal by bus with a police officer and then having my documents taken by the police to check-in (landside) and brought back several hours later. Certainly not for the faint hearted, but these are the things we do to fly on IL-18s, etc! I am sure that SV-SV at JED is easier, given that you will not have to switch terminals.
MEA-707 From Netherlands, joined Nov 1999, 4117 posts, RR: 37 Reply 16, posted (11 months 2 weeks 1 day 23 hours ago) and read 7124 times:
Quoting mogandoCI (Reply 11): On a slightly off topic subject, has anyone actually tried transiting at Jeddah or Riyadh? Is it competitive with AMM/DXB/DOH, or is it rather intimidating ?
I flew CDG-JED-RUH-SIN and CGK-RUH-CDG last year on SV and it went pretty well. They were not really used to transit passengers, on the way out at JED I was the only one but friendly staff walked me to the departure terminal and gave me a coupon for a free dinner, no need to have a Saudi visa or so.
nobody has ever died from hard work, but why take the risk?
HiJazzey From Saudi Arabia, joined Sep 2005, 788 posts, RR: 1 Reply 17, posted (11 months 2 weeks 1 day 21 hours ago) and read 6926 times:
JED currently isn't geared up for transit, but that will change once the new terminal complex is completed in 2014. The airport will be a lot more competitive then. Construction seems to be progressing well, they've already started on the steel superstructure:
777way From Pakistan, joined Dec 2005, 5164 posts, RR: 4 Reply 18, posted (11 months 2 weeks 1 day 19 hours ago) and read 6786 times:
Off topic but why isnt the royal flight 744 flying, according to an fleet data site its stored at Victorville and its registration is being transferred to a 748BBJ have they ordered one?
JoeyTaffy93 From United Kingdom, joined Jan 2010, 20 posts, RR: 0 Reply 19, posted (11 months 2 weeks 1 day 19 hours ago) and read 6788 times:
I do like the Saudia livery. I have always kept an eye on Saudia and Iraqi Airways and to me this image rebranding is rather good. It's more catching to the public than Saudi Arabian Airlines.
MaverickM11 From United States of America, joined Apr 2000, 15722 posts, RR: 47 Reply 20, posted (11 months 2 weeks 1 day 19 hours ago) and read 6730 times:
Quoting mogandoCI (Reply 11):
On a slightly off topic subject, has anyone actually tried transiting at Jeddah or Riyadh? Is it competitive with AMM/DXB/DOH, or is it rather intimidating ?
There's no comparison. Theres simply no infrastructure or focus on transit passengers. One of the reasons the GCC carriers are so successful is because their neighbor carriers are such basket cases, including SV. Even if you're a Saudi would you choose a GCC carrier to just about anywhere all hours of the day or a few flights/week on SV?
HiJazzey From Saudi Arabia, joined Sep 2005, 788 posts, RR: 1 Reply 21, posted (11 months 2 weeks 1 day 15 hours ago) and read 6522 times:
That's true for long haul, although they've improved their schedules. There's increased frequency to London, Paris (with AF codeshares), New York, also to some asian destinations like KUL. It doesn't help that they have to operate out of 2 hubs and rely mainly on O&D. But for regional destinations they're strong enough.
usdcaguy From United States of America, joined Jan 2004, 753 posts, RR: 2 Reply 23, posted (11 months 2 weeks 1 day 11 hours ago) and read 6252 times:
Does anyone else wish for the green, blue and white livery again? The first time I saw one, I was at JFK pushing back from the gate on a TW 747. It took us forever to run the length of the aircraft while backing out. I think these colors are timeless; I wonder if they would ever come back in some shape or form?
planejamie From United Kingdom, joined Sep 2011, 572 posts, RR: 0 Reply 24, posted (11 months 2 weeks 1 day 10 hours ago) and read 6130 times:
Quoting MaverickM11 (Reply 20): There's no comparison. Theres simply no infrastructure or focus on transit passengers. One of the reasons the GCC carriers are so successful is because their neighbor carriers are such basket cases, including SV. Even if you're a Saudi would you choose a GCC carrier to just about anywhere all hours of the day or a few flights/week on SV?
Actually, SV aren't bad for regional frequencies, plus having lived in Saudi they actually offered a better value flight than the other GCC carriers, e.g. RUH-DXB you have LCCs, SV or EK. I flew EK the first time, hated it - it was overpriced for what it was (this was 2008) and I felt cramped and generally let down by EK almost, hence I've not flown them again. SV on the same route offered a far better meal, better legroom and more space (2-5-2 on a 777, they've now gone 3-3-3 on the reconfigured 777s) and whilst at the time there was no AVOD (there is now on new aircraft and reconfigured aircraft)
Personally, I'd transit at JED/RUH tomorrow if I had the money - just for the experience, then again I lived in Riyadh for 2 years and know what to expect. I think once the new terminal at JED is complete and they rearrange RUH (they still have an empty terminal - Terminal 4) then they'll be a really nice carrier to transit on. I wish SV all the best! They're my 4th favourite airline! (BA being 1st, then FI, then CX)
25 HiJazzey: Regarding RUH , it's being redeveloped too. They're going to quickly build a new terminal (T5), starting in November to be completed in a year. Once t
26 ju068: Could you provide us with frequencies before and after please?
27 bgm: Actually, their reconfigured 772s are in a 3-4-3 configuration in economy, not 3-3-3. They have 2 versions: one with a large number of life-flat busi
28 BMI727: Out of curiosity, did people ever really stop referring to the airline as Saudia? I and some people I know still refer to US Air when talking about US
29 JoeyTaffy93: That's a good point, I used to refer to Saudi Arabian as Saudia. Each to their own I suppose. I know it's not quite the same, but it's like British A
30 PM: Classic livery. Worriesome country but their planes look great.
31 klwright69: Saudi Arabia clearly has money, and they are investing more in the country. The national airline needs to be better utilized. Saudi Arabian Airlines
32 babybus: I personally think the old Saudi Arabian Airlines title and graded blue logo was better than this 'rebrand'. There is no need for Saudia to be competi
33 ju068: So basically Saudia is like Qatar Airways, overall experience is more important than profit? If Saudia does decide that it wants to turn its base into
34 PezySPU: The way I see it, SV has lots of things going on right now. The airline is being prepared for the long-awaited privatization, so they want to achieve
35 poLot: While Saudia is drastically improving, I wouldn't expect them to win as top hub in the region as long as they are based in Saudi Arabia.
37 skipness1E: Clearly photoshopped. The background is Heathrow before the Europier lost its airbridges on the South side. It hasn't looked like that in about two y
38 Vasu: Could it be that they tested the new/old name a while ago and nobody on A.net noticed?
39 ju068: Well they will have advantages when compared to the other carriers in the region. Firstly, they have a lot of religious traffic which will create a s
40 Sean-SAN-: The NO-ALCOHOL policy will always inhibit Saudia from becoming a desirable choice for a lot of transit pax. Might as well fly on any of the less-stric
41 poLot: Not just that, but Saudi Arabia has a negative reputation in most of the western world, especially in regards to its view towards women. That alone w
42 ju068: I disagree with you, if Aeroflot managed to change their image and become what they are today, then I do not see why Saudia can't. Plus, in today's e
43 moathm: the reason why Saudi Arabian Airlines usiung Saudia brand name now is that we have joined skyteam recenly and saudia brand name is much shorter than s
44 Tupolev160: "I personally think the old Saudi Arabian Airlines title and graded blue logo was better than this 'rebrand'. There is no need for Saudia to be compet
45 Tupolev160: Also they ruined the tail-logo of one of the most beautiful liveries in the world. I'm surprised they didn't decide to remove the Saudi flag from the
46 klwright69: I do not agree Saudi is a royal airline that the public may use. This would imply it's some kind of a exclusive, luxury airline, and it is a huge airl
47 usdcaguy: Is there anything Saudia does or could do in lieu of serving booze that would give it a distinctive Arab flavor? I remember them talking about serving
48 RussianJet: Aviation enthusiasts might. After all, this isn't IRS.net......
49 HiJazzey: I don't have any schedules to work with, I'm going by memory. JED-CDG used to be something like 1-2 a week, it's now virtualy daily (AF codeshare on
50 Tupolev160: What's wrong with those Westerners? If there is no booze and IFE on a flight they die or what?! Is like retarded children. No feeding bottle and toys
51 MaverickM11: All of that--plus--SV's distribution network is anti-passenger. You can book an EK flight anytime, any place, but SV is harder to book. It's not just
52 OB1504: But if every other airline in the region offers these amenities, why wouldn't a passenger choose them over SV?
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