Traveling by air, although today much quicker than it was 40 years ago has often become a test of endurance, both mental and physical. Cheaper airfares and stingy airlines mean that airports have become so crowded that they barely manage to operate efficiently at peak times and the space between seats in aircraft has been shrinking every year, as airlines try to pack in ever more passengers into their planes.
The recent decision to allow foreign carriers to operate in Saudi Arabia on domestic routes is welcome news for the flying public that needs more choices. Although Saudi Arabian Airlines, the national carrier, has overall been a good airline over the last decades, it has become clear that it alone was struggling to carry domestic passengers in comfort on domestic routes, especially on high-density routes such as Riyadh-Jeddah and Jeddah-Dammam. Although the Saudi government allowed the formation of private Saudi airlines in the past 10 years, only one remains, NAS Air, and it has had a hard time competing with Saudia, which has dominated the terminals in Jeddah and Riyadh. I remember asking a Saudia supervisor at Jeddah airport for help after returning from a trip to Damascus in 2010 on NAS Air, when we had been waiting for an hour for our luggage to appear on the conveyor belt. He just sneered at me and refused to do anything. In fairness, it was not his responsibility to help the passengers of a competitor airline.
But it is not only the airlines that are letting us down. Old airport terminals are also adding stress to our journeys. A prime example is the North terminal at Jeddah’s King Abdulaziz International Airport. A new terminal is being built but meanwhile thousands of passengers are still put through hell every day going through that terminal. The high number of Umrah, Haj and foreign passengers that go through Jeddah no doubt press the facility to its maximum operating capacity, but the rude attitude of airport staff, from the check-in staff to the passport control officers leaves a sour taste in the mouth of many travelers. The last time I flew out of Jeddah last December, the check-in agent screamed abuse at the Asian laborer in front of me. When my turn came, the agent was all smiles, but I felt disgusted by such cruel behavior. Similar scenes at passport control happen too, with Asian laborers shouted at as if they were wild animals, and nicer treatment reserved for Saudis and westerners. When I made it to my gate, sweaty and exhausted, I felt as if I had just run a 6-km race. Contrast all of this with the speed and efficiency of Dubai’s airport and their Emirates airline. Everyone is treated well; passport control and airline staff is efficient, helping everyone feel better in what is an already stressful situation. If they can do it, why can’t we?
Here in Brazil the federal government has recently privatized its main airports in order to get the private sector to invest in building new terminals. Airports in Brasilia, São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro are undergoing massive expansion projects, with many of these new terminals slated to be ready in time for the World Cup in June. In the meantime, the Guarulhos airport in São Paulo that I experienced coming back from Saudi Arabia was terrible. Old, with no clear signs telling you where to check-in, it felt like a third world airport, rather than the busiest airport in Latin America. The only improvements I noticed were a Starbucks coffee shop and a brand new bookstore.
Many Saudis have noted that countries like India and Indonesia have world-class airports that put ours to shame. We may have had beautiful facilities in the 1980s when Riyadh airport and the Haj terminal in Jeddah were considered architectural masterpieces. But that was a long time ago and the rest of the world has caught up and moved far ahead of us. Hopefully with the new terminals in Jeddah, the first impression that foreigners have on their arrival in the Kingdom will be a good one. Now, if we could only work on the attitude of airport staff, impressing on them how important kind and decent treatment of all passengers is, no matter whether they are flying first class or economy, then we will have achieved something.
n The writer is a Saudi journalist based in Brazil.
