Tajikistan’s privately owned airline, Somon Air, has launched regular direct flights to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, according to the Somon Air press center. 

Somon Air is expected to operate its first regular flight from Dushanbe to Jeddah today afternoon, at 2:30 pm.  

The Somon Air press center says the airline will operate twice-weekly service from Dushanbe to Jeddah on Thursdays and Sundays and once-weekly service from Khujand, the capital of Sughd province, to Jeddah on Tuesdays.

Somon Air will use Boeing 737-800 and Boeing 737-900 to operate these flights. 

Jeddah is a city in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia and the country's commercial center.  Jeddah is the principal gateway to Mecca, the holiest city in Islam, 65 kilometers to the east, while Medina, the second-holiest city, is 360 kilometers to the north.  Economically, Jeddah is focusing on further developing capital investment in scientific and engineering leadership within Saudi Arabia, and the Middle East. 

Somon Air is the first private airline in Tajikistan with an office headquartered in Dushanbe.  The airline operations are based at Dushanbe International Airport.  The airline started operating on February 5, 2008 with regular flights to Moscow and Dubai.  Somon Air also serves as the official carrier of President of the Republic of Tajikistan and other Tajikistan high-ranking officials.

Somon Air is a member of the International Air Transport Association (IATA).  Somon Air's fleet consists of Boeing 737-800 and 737-900 family aircraft. The company is focused on expanding the route network of air transportation and the fleet, and currently operates regular flights from Tajikistan to Germany, the United Arab Emirates, Turkiye, China, India, Russia, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.