# Prince Mohammad Bin Abdulaziz Airport (MED)

> Medina, SA · IATA: MED · ICAO: OEMA · Large Airport · Cargo Hub

## Quick Facts

| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| IATA | `MED` |
| ICAO | `OEMA` |
| City | Medina |
| Country | SA |
| Type | Large Airport |
| Elevation | 656 m |
| Cargo | ✅ |
| GPS | 24.55340, 39.70510 |

## Description

Prince Mohammad Bin Abdulaziz Airport (MED/OEMA) in Medina moves roughly 23,000 tonnes of air cargo a year — under three percent of Saudi Arabia's total — and is first and foremost a pilgrimage airport rather than a freight base. Sitting about 20 km southeast of Islam's second holiest city, it handled some 10.9 million passengers in 2024, making it the kingdom's fourth-busiest airport, with the great majority travelling for Hajj and Umrah. That translates into substantial belly capacity on pilgrim and scheduled services, complemented by a dedicated international cargo terminal with customs clearance and temperature-controlled storage for perishables; cargo cut-off runs 90 minutes before departure domestically and 72 hours for international consignments. Typical flows are perishable imports, pharmaceuticals and pilgrimage-related exports such as Zamzam water. Tibah Airports Operation Company has run the field since 2012; MED was the first Saudi airport developed under a build-transfer-operate public-private partnership. A newly signed memorandum of understanding between Saudia Cargo and Tibah Airports aims to grow freight out of Medina through preferential rates for food products, pharmaceuticals and manufactured goods, plus incentive programmes supporting Saudia Cargo freighter rotations, including to the Jeddah hub. In parallel, a second expansion phase worth SAR 1.2 billion is under way, lifting capacity to 17 million passengers by the end of 2027 and adding a 39,000 m² domestic terminal. The Haramain High Speed Railway ties Medina to Jeddah and Mecca for rail-based pre- and on-carriage, while high-volume or time-critical freight usually still routes through King Abdulaziz Airport in Jeddah (JED).

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*Freight Academy — Airport Profile: [https://www.freight-academy.com/en/information/airports/prince-mohammad-bin-abdulaziz-airport-med](https://www.freight-academy.com/en/information/airports/prince-mohammad-bin-abdulaziz-airport-med)*

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*LLM-Summary (JSON): https://www.freight-academy.com/api/v1/airports/prince-mohammad-bin-abdulaziz-airport-med/llm-summary*