Ibn Saud. USS Quincy. FDR. DC3. Saudia. The common thread

Ibn Saud. USS Quincy. FDR. DC3. Saudia. The common thread - the birth of aviation in the Kingdom. The missing element? The airport where the DC-3s were based/operated from.

A short feature this week in the series, “Aviation in Saudi: Past, Present, and Future.”

The Kandara airport in Jeddah is said to be Saudia's first operating base and KSA's first airport. The airport doesn't exist anymore, it was redeveloped into a multi-purpose real estate parcel in the early 1980's. Kandara gave way to Saudia’s swanky new base in Jeddah, the King Abdulaziz International Airport.

Fast forward to today, 28 airports across the length and breadth of the Kingdom serve communities with scheduled commercial operations.

Next week, we will dive into more details of the Kingdom's current airport landscape and grand plans.

(Credits to respective photographer/s for image/s from the early days; views my own; happy to amend inaccuracies, if any)

P.S. The satellite image from 2023 still shows a part of the runway in the land parcel that was redeveloped. The image from 1956 is an aerial shot of Jeddah with a clear view of the runways at the Kandara Airport.

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