Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], October 31 (ANI): IndiGo airlines on Friday announced the launch of direct flights between Bengaluru and Riyadh, starting November 16, according to an official statement from the airline.

IndiGo will operate its Airbus A320 aircraft on this new route with the aim of offering affordable and seamless connectivity for travellers, the statement read.

Riyadh is the second city in Saudi Arabia, after Jeddah, to be directly connected to India's technology hub.

IndiGo currently connects India with four key cities in Saudi Arabia - Jeddah, Riyadh, Dammam, and Madinah - along with a growing network across the Middle East.

The addition of the Bengaluru-Riyadh route further strengthens IndiGo's presence in the region. This expansion supports the increasing demand driven by business travel, trade, workforce movement, and tourism between India and the Middle East, the statement added.

'As Saudi Arabia's capital and a key hub for trade and investment, Riyadh is significant for IndiGo to strengthen air connectivity with India. This new route from Bengaluru marks IndiGo's fourth non-stop connection to Riyadh, after Delhi, Mumbai, and Hyderabad. It will enhance accessibility for business and workforce from the region while reinforcing IndiGo's growing network across Saudi Arabia and the Middle East. With this launch, we continue our focus on expanding international connectivity and making travel more convenient,' said Vinay Malhotra, IndiGo's head of sales.

According to the schedule released by the airline, the Bengaluru-Riyadh flight on plane 6E 0053 will depart on Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday at 22:05 from Bengaluru on November 16 and subsequently other days too.

On Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, 6E 0054 will depart from Riyadh at 2:00 and arrive at 9:15 in the morning in Bengaluru.

Indigo has a fleet of 400+ aircraft and the airline operates around 2200+ daily flights, connecting 90+ domestic and 40+ international destinations, inducted 58 aircraft in 2024 and welcomed over 118 million customers in FY25. (ANI)