KKIA Director General Abdullah Al-Tassan signed an agreement Saturday with Adel Abuljadayel, chairman of Adel Abuljadayel Flight Catering Company.
“The service is to be carried out within the framework of the Kingdom’s tourism policy promoted by Prince Sultan bin Salman, chairman of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities,” Al-Tassan told Arab News.
Adel Abuljadayel Flight Catering Company was chosen among 17 qualified applicants who bid for the airport project. Al-Tassan said the new facility would be constructed at the mezzanine floor of Terminal 1 for departing and arriving foreign airline passengers. Some 36 foreign airlines operating through KKIA carrying around 140,000 first and business class passengers annually.
“We are also negotiating with Saudi Arabian Airlines to put up similar lounges at Terminals 2 and 3 for international and domestic passengers respectively at KKIA,” Al-Tassan said. “The airport has been witnessing a 15-percent growth this sector,” Al-Tassan said, adding that it is the duty of the authorities to offer quality services to this segment of travelers who pay a higher price for their air travel.
The new lounge will be accommodated on a 1,108 square meters area, enough to cover more than 150 guests at a time. The director general also said the departing passengers who pass through the lounge will be able to process their immigration formalities smoothly without loss of time.
Adel Abuljadayel Flight Catering Company, which currently offers services to more than 10 airlines at King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah, is expected to carry out the project with the technical cooperation of Singapore Airport Terminal Services.
Vincent Chan, chief executive officer of Adel Abuljadayel Flight Catering Company, said the project would be completed within nine months as per the contract. The new lounge will cater to the needs of all categories of first and business class passengers, including families and businessmen.
“It would include a special catering service, a rest area, a family section and a business center,” he said, adding that there will be separate prayer halls for men and women.
