Last year, Saudi Arabia's new national airline Riyadh Airannounced its first order for aircraft: 39 Boeing 787-9 aircraft for its long-haul network, with an option for 33 other aircraft.
A few days ago, Riyadh Air transformed the trial. The carrier has placed an order for 60 Airbus A321neo aircraftThis time for the short- and medium-haul network.
The company with a future fleet of 132 aircraft will therefore be ready to compete with the other Gulf carriers, including Emirates, Etihad, Qatar Airways and the current national carrier Saudia. This is underlined in the press release following the signing of the order with Airbus. The agreement positions the airline for efficient flight operations with an optimal fleet to achieve its ambitions of a network of 100 destinations by 2030 " said the press release.
Riyadh Air has also reconfirmed its ambition to launch its first flights in 2025. Its CEO, Tony Douglas, explained on CNN a few days ago that he was planning to launch the launch of ten air routes by the end of next year.
And this, despite an aircraft delivery schedule that remains uncertain. The Airbus press release does not mention any date for the arrival of the first A321neo. For its part, Boeing, which is mired in financial problems, is finding it very difficult to meet its delivery schedule to all the world's airlines.
This will probably be the biggest stumbling block to the actual launch of Riyadh Air, despite the optimism of its CEO.
