Saudi Arabia air traffic to Europe has dropped sharply due to the outbreak of the swine flu virus. The start of the summer usually brings in huge profits for most of the airlines, because many Saudi families spend their vacations abroad. This year many Saudis have opted not to travel to western countries affected by the swine flu virus, including the United States and several European states. Airline and travel agency sources say they are suffering huge losses amounting to millions of dollars.
Al Faris Travel and Tourism Company director of sales said their cancellation rates are between 35% and 50%. Mustafa Lutfi said many airlines have increased their frequency of flights to East Asian countries and there has “been a surge of bookings on flights to East Asian countries.”
