Start-up carrier Riyadh Air continues to add to its order list, this time placing a firm order with Airbus for 60 Airbus A321neo aircraft.
The order for the 60 A321neo aircraft was signed at at the Future Investment Initiative (FII) in Riyadh, marking a significant milestone for Riyadh Air as it moves from a startup to an operational airline.
The signing ceremony was attended by His Excellency Yasir Al-Rumayyan Governor of the Public Investment Fund (PIF) and Chairman of Riyadh Air, Tony Douglas, CEO of Riyadh Air, Christian Scherer, Chief Executive Officer, Commercial Aircraft at Airbus and Benoit de Saint-Exupery, Executive Vice President Sales of the Commercial Aircraft business.
In Quotes
Excellency Yasir Al-Rumayyan, PIF Governor and Chairman of Riyadh Air, said:
We are pleased to embark on another key milestone in Riyadh Air’s journey with the carrier’s second major fleet order, this time in partnership with Airbus. This deal underlines the airline’s ambitious intentions in advance of next year’s launch as it builds a comprehensive international network and establishes Riyadh as a major strategic global aviation hub.
Riyadh Air CEO Tony Douglas.
“This investment will not only enable us to support economic growth in the aviation industry, it will ensure Riyadh Air operates one of the most fuel efficient fleets. It’ll be instrumental in helping Saudi Arabia achieve its decarbonisation goals,”
“This deal strongly reinforces the positive economic impact of Saudi Arabia’s newest airline on both a global and local scale to facilitate the fast-growing Saudi aviation ecosystem.”
Christian Scherer, CEO of Commercial Aircraft at Airbus said:
“We are proud to welcome Riyadh Air as a new Airbus customer and partner. The latest generation A321neo aircraft will bring exceptional efficiency to the airline’s operations, concrete contributions to its decarbonisation goals and comfort to its passengers. We look forward to working together to support the strong ambitions of Saudi aviation.”
Growing the operation
The Riyadh Air order marks its entry into the single-aisle aircraft market, with it securing the largest version of the A320 family for its fleet. This will be combined with the order made with Boeing for 39 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft – thus giving the airline both regional and long-haul reach.
The challenge that Riyadh Air will face is one that all airlines face – delivery time- frames. With order slots filling up, that could be the bigger challenge – getting enough aircraft so that Ryiadh Air can execute its plan to serve over 100 destinations by 2030.
It’s interesting to note that no time frame for delivery has been mentioned in the release by Airbus. We’ll have to see when the first ones roll out of the Airbus factories.
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