Saudi airline, Saudia, to ban gender-mixing

Saudi Arabia’s national carrier Saudia intends to ban gender-mixing aboard all its flights in line with rules enforced by the conservative Gulf kingdom.

The airlines said it decided to act following recurrent complaints from passengers objecting to have males seated next to their wives and other female family members.

“There are solutions to this problem…we will soon enforce rules that will satisfy all passengers,” Saudia assistant manager for marketing Abdul Rahman Al Fahd said, quoted by the Saudi Arabic language daily ‘Ajel’.

He did not elaborate, but the paper said it would include instructions to flight booking staff at the Gulf kingdom’s airports to ensure males and females are separated aboard Saudia’s flights unless they are closely related.

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