Riyadh Air receives inaugural training aircraft
January 9, 2025
New Middle Eastern airline Riyadh Air is preparing to receive its first aircraft into its home base of Riyad’s King Khalid International Airport, with the leased 787-9 Dreamliner to be “utilized over the coming months for training purposes,” confirmed Saudi Arabia’s second flag carrier.
This initial aircraft is separate to the original order of up to 72 787-9 aircraft (including 39 confirmed units with options for 33 more), revealed in March 2023 just months after the formation of the airline. At the time, Riyadh Air CEO Tony Douglas stated that “the new airline reflects the ambitious vision of Saudi Arabia to be at the core of shaping the future of global air travel and be a true disrupter in terms of guest experience”. In October 2024, the carrier also placed a firm order for 60 A321neo family aircraft.
Although this first 787-9 unit does not feature what the airline describes as “highly anticipated cabin interiors” – something “set to be revealed soon” – it does nevertheless have “a high-specification interior to meet guests’ expectations when flying with a world-class modern airline”.
Riyadh Air is in the process of working to obtain its Air Operator Certificate (AOC) with the General Authority of Civil Aviation; a process this new aircraft will continue. During the Routes World 2024 conference in Bahrain last year, Douglas explained that Riyadh Air was “into route-proving flights,” hoping at the time to secure the AOC by the end of the year.
“The opportunity to lease this plane demonstrates the innovative nature of Riyadh Air to create solutions and start serving the people of Riyadh and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 2025,” concluded Riyadh Air, which expects to release route information early this year.
