Riyadh Air is having some bad luck. The new Saudi airline, which is to compete with the current national carrier Saudia, has been slowing down its development for several months. The reason: the aircraft manufacturer Boeing, which has been unable to deliver the company's first eight aircraft on time. Instead of these 8 Boeing 787 Dreamliners, Riyadh Air will have to make do with four aircraft - and at the very least, not before the first quarter of 2026.
The airline, which had promised to start operations in 2025, has therefore had to resort to launching its first flights to London Heathrow... with its reserve aircraft, normally provided in case of technical failure. Painted in the colours of Riyadh Air, its Boeing 787 was bought from Oman Air. Eight years old, it will offer the Omani airline's in-flight product on its London route. This is a far cry from the glamorous inauguration that the airline's management probably had in mind. The first flight will take off on 26 October, landing in the British capital early in the morning.
Because it does not meet the service standards to which Riyadh Air adheres, the flights are not being marketed to the general public. The happy few on board the Riyadh-London Heathrow route will be employees and a few guests. The others will wait until the new aircraft arrive. In fact, the airline's website contains an anomaly: there is no booking page.
According to the CEO of Riyadh Air, Tony Douglas, the flight on the emergency B787 will make it possible to retain the slots allocated by British civil aviation to Heathrow. And, above all, to fine-tune on-board service standards as part of the "Pathway to Perfect" programme. Tony Douglas has announced that flights to Dubai will follow very shortly. He is expected to announce the additional destinations that Riyadh Air will serve, as soon as it receives its own aircraft.
In the meantime, the honour is safe. The company will have kept its promise to launch its first flights in 2025...
