Riyadh Air to fix Saudi’s ‘unacceptable’ lack of connectivity
Riyadh Air, Saudi Arabia’s new national airline, is positioning itself to tackle the connectivity gap between the Kingdom and key global capitals.
Speaking at Routes World 2024, CEO Tony Douglas described the current lack of non-stop flights from Riyadh to many major cities as “unacceptable”.
While Saudi Arabia’s current national carrier, Saudia, will primarily focus on connecting Jeddah with regional and some international destinations, Riyadh Air will provide more direct links between the capital, Riyadh, and mega-cities around the world.
This is a significant part of the country’s Vision 2030 plan, which seeks to diversify the economy and promote tourism.
One of Riyadh Air’s key targets is to boost connections between Saudi Arabia and Asia, a region with booming economies and increasing travel demand. By offering new direct routes to capitals such as Tokyo, Seoul, and Singapore, the airline hopes to position Riyadh as a major hub for business and tourism.
“It’s about getting as much point to point connectivity as far as we can,” Douglas said, adding that it was “unacceptable” that there were currently no non-stop flights between Riyadh and the largest cities in Japan, South Korea and China.
Riyadh Air is expected to focus on launching routes to key global capitals, particularly in Asia and Europe. Likely destinations include major cities such as Beijing and Shanghai. Routes to prominent European cities such as London, Paris, and Frankfurt are also anticipated.
Douglas said the carrier was still on course to launch in 2025. “Early in the new year we will be releasing what the first routes will be,” he added.
