Middle Eastern airlines connect nine US cities with nearly 3k December flights

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Middle Eastern airlines connect nine US cities with nearly 3k December flights

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Simple Flying | Simple Flying

By Sky Industry News

Dec 7, 2024

The aviation sector in the United States is the busiest globally, with over 800 million passengers flying through the country in 2023. This December, nine airlines are scheduled to operate a total of 2,768 roundtrip flights between the US and the Middle East. Qatar Airways holds the largest market share among these airlines.

Qatar Airways, based at Hamad International Airport in Doha, operates a widebody fleet including Boeing 787s and 777-300ERs, as well as Airbus A350s and A380s. The airline will serve ten American cities next month: Boston, Dallas, Washington (Dulles), Houston, New York (JFK), Los Angeles, Miami, Chicago, Seattle, and San Francisco. The route to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York is its busiest.

Emirates is another major player connecting the US with the Middle East. Based at Dubai International Airport, Emirates will operate flights to eleven US destinations: Boston, Dallas, Washington (Dulles), Houston, New York (JFK), Los Angeles, Orlando, Miami, Chicago, Seattle, and San Francisco. The carrier's route to JFK features two daily flights each way.

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EL AL holds the third-largest market share on this route. Operating from Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv, EL AL will serve six US cities: Boston, Newark, Fort Lauderdale, New York (JFK), Los Angeles, and Miami. Its busiest route is also to JFK.

Etihad Airways operates from Abu Dhabi International Airport with four American routes: Boston, Washington (Dulles), New York (JFK), and Chicago. The AUH-JFK route is notable for being one of Etihad's first to use the A380 aircraft.

SAUDIA ranks fourth in market share for US-Middle East flights. From King Abdulaziz International Airport in Jeddah and Riyadh's airport, it serves three US cities: Washington (Dulles), New York (JFK), and Los Angeles.

Royal Jordanian completes the top five with three routes from Queen Alia International Airport in Amman to Detroit, New York (JFK), and Chicago.

American Airlines and United Airlines also operate one route each to the Middle East alongside Kuwait Airways' single route from Kuwait International Airport to JFK.

Some of the longest routes include Emirates' flight from Dubai to Los Angeles covering 8,334 miles and SAUDIA's Jeddah-Los Angeles flight at 8,238 miles.