Lufthansa is set to operate daily flights from Dammam to Frankfurt, increasing the number of flights to 24 weekly departures.

This was announced at a press conference at King Fahad International Airport on Monday by Harald Hahn, Lufthansa director for Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Yemen.

There are now three direct weekly flights on a Boeing 737-800 in a two-class configuration while the remaining four flights are operated by Airbus A330/A340 with three classes including Lufthansa’s well acclaimed ‘First Class’.

Yousef Al-Dhahri, general director of KFIA, said that the increased number of Lufthansa flights was in line with the market plans for the KFIA.

Additionally, the percentage of travelers in the third quarter of 2013 had grown by more than 13 percent compared to the same period in 2012, increasing the demand for more flights in this sector.

Dhahri said: “In this event I would like to announce that the Philippine Airlines is also scheduled to operate flights from KFIA by Dec.3, 2013.”

Hahn stressed the fact that the daily flight from Dammam has been warmly welcomed and “our guests are aware that Lufthansa offers more connections to Europe and North America than any other carrier.”

Hahn said Lufthansa has come a long way from only a weekly flight to and from Dhahran 53 years ago. He added that the carrier has remained committed to Saudi Arabia as evidenced by its latest upgrade to a daily flight from Dammam.

“This move underlines the importance of the Eastern region of the Kingdom and the need for smooth connections to Europe and the United States,” he added.

This season Lufthansa is operating its largest ever schedule from the Kingdom providing travel flexibility to customers flying to Frankfurt or Munich and beyond.

In addition to the service between Dammam and Frankfurt Lufthansa will now operate daily flights between Jeddah and Frankfurt; between Riyadh and Frankfurt and thrice weekly between Riyadh and Munich.