Ethiopian Airlines to resume its 4th Saudi Arabian route with Boeing 737 Medina flights

Ethiopian Airlines is returning to Medina, its fourth destination in Saudi Arabia and 12th across the Middle East. Launched in 2017, regular flights to Medina – which revolves around pilgrims for Umrah – continued until mid-2020. While flights mainly used Boeing 737-800s, schedules data shows that the A350-900, 737-700, 767-300ER, 777-200LR, 777-300ER, 787-8, and 787-9 were all used at times.<br/>According to OAG/Cirium and now bookable, Africa's largest airline will serve Medina – 1,073 miles (1,726 km) away – from August 2nd. Oddly, there is little lead time from going on sale to taking off. Served four weekly year-round for Umrah, it is scheduled as follows, with all times local. It will use 154-seat 737-800s, with 16 seats in business and 138 in economy. Given the distance, the block time seems very long: Addis Ababa to Medina: ET442, 23:20-02:50+1 (3h 30m block), and Medina to Addis Ababa: ET443, 03:55-07:25 (3h 30m) While the schedule may appear horrendous, it is for one reason: to maximize two-way connectivity across sub-Saharan Africa over the carrier's growing Addis Ababa hub. This is as important for Medina as it is for other routes.<br/>