Saudi Arabian carrier Riyadh Air is continuing its network build-out, adding three new destinations to its map, including destinations in Pakistan and the Philippines.
The next three destinations for the airline include linking Riyadh to Islamabad, Lahore and Manila. The airline will start services to Islamabad on 14 August (daily, but split times), Lahore on 18th August (three times a week) and Manila on 9 September 2026 (daily service).
Planned operations are as follows, provided by Riyadh Air:
| Flight # | Inaugural | From | Depart | To | Arrive | Freq. | |
| RX0659 | 14th August | King Khalid International Airport (RUH) | 13:45 | Islamabad International Airport (ISB) | 20:00 | 4X (Sun, Mon, Wed, Fri) | |
| RX0660 | 14th August | Islamabad International Airport (ISB) | 21:30 | King Khalid International Airport (RUH) | 00:00+1 | 4X (Sun, Mon, Wed, Fri) | |
| RX0661 | 15th August | King Khalid International Airport (RUH) | 20:10 | Islamabad International Airport (ISB) | 02:25+1 | 3X (Tue, Thu, Sat) | |
| RX0662 | 16th August | Islamabad International Airport (ISB) | 04:25 | King Khalid International Airport (RUH) | 06:50 | 3X (Tue, Thu, Sat) | |
| RX0675 | 18th August | King Khalid International Airport (RUH) | 13:40 | Allama Iqbal International Airport (LHE) | 19:50 | 3X (Tue, Thu, Sat) | |
| RX0676 | 18th August | Allama Iqbal International Airport (LHE) | 21:20 | King Khalid International Airport (RUH) | 00:00+1 | 3X (Tue, Thu, Sat) | |
| RX0873 | 9th September | King Khalid International Airport (RUH) | 01:05 | Ninoy Aquino International Airport (MNL) | 15:55 | 7 (Daily) | |
| RX0874 | 9th September | Ninoy Aquino International Airport (MNL) | 17:25 | King Khalid International Airport (RUH) | 22:15 | 7 (Daily) |
All times local.
The new routes will be operated on Riyadh Air’s new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners, featuring the airline’s latest cabin interiors and onboard experience.
Both links are there to provide onward connectivity (as the airline builds out its Riyadh hub), as well as serving expatriate communities (both Pakistani and Filipino) and delivering the wanted tourism and business traffic that the airline so desires.
The build-out continues
As well as the new Asia destinations, Riyadh Air are have got further cities in its sights, with Bangkok starting on the 2nd September and Addis Ababa planned for 1st Janaury 2027.
However, there will be constraints on its plans, as it waits on both Boeing and Airbus for aircraft deliveries. Currently, Riyadh Air has seven aircraft in its fleet (all Boeing 787-9), with its “technical spare” from Oman Air.
It’s going to be a fine balance of building the network, whilst managing the resources it has, and hoping some aircraft are out of action for long for maintence periods. And that’s critical when an airline operates a smaller fleet and its hard to substitute or lease in another aircraft to cover your operations.
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