By AFP
Dubai: Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund-backed airline startup Riyadh Air has signalled interest in Boeing jets destined for Chinese airlines if not delivered due to the escalating trade war between the United States and China.
The American plane maker is looking to resell potentially dozens of planes locked out of China by tariffs after repatriating a third jet to the United States.
“What we’ve done… is made it quite clear to Boeing, should that ever happen, and the keyword there is should, we’ll happily take them all,” airline CEO Tony Douglas told Reuters.
Boeing took the rare step of publicly flagging the potential aircraft sale during an analyst call last week, saying there would be no shortage of buyers in a tight jet market.
India’s national carrier, Air India, is in talks with Boeing to acquire about 10 737 MAX jets after Chinese carriers rejected deliveries amid the ongoing trade war with the US.
Riyadh Air does not expect delivery delays from either planemaker to be resolved soon.
Launch plans
Riyadh Air aims to service 100 destinations by 2030, starting with 25 new destinations per year “if we are building ourselves at the right projection,” Osamah Alnuaiser, Senior Vice President of Marketing and Corporate Communication, told Gulf News.
The airline anticipates being in a position to announce its first destinations by the end of the summer. However, fleet acquisition remains a critical factor tied to the launch timeline. Riyadh Air has firm orders for 72 Boeing 787 Dreamliners and 60 Airbus A321 family aircraft, totalling 132.
“I think we’re ready in the upcoming few months, but I cannot give (the exact) time. Well, stay tuned for the end of the summer; hopefully, we will be in a position. But again, it’s all governed by aircraft delivery and the close relationship with Boeing,” said Alnuaiser.
While acknowledging the prevalent manufacturing and supply chain challenges impacting deliveries across the industry, Riyadh Air stressed its close partnership and ongoing dialogue with Boeing to ensure delivery timelines are met. The airline has teams visiting Boeing’s facilities (in Charleston) and has visibility on its first aircraft.
‘Ready to launch’
“We are ready to operate. It’s just a blink of an eye that you get that first aircraft, and we operate, and then the sky is the limit. But it’s a domino effect. So, it’s not only about the first aircraft; it’s the delivery of the remaining aircraft. So, it’s a domino effect when getting your first aircraft, the second. So on and so forth, so that you can operate destination number one and two and three and so forth,” he added.
“So, once you open that to ticket sales and operational readiness, you will need to have the confidence that you have the fleet ready, you have your human resource capital ready as well, that you can operate more than two destinations, and then that cycle brings up the number of employees,” said Alnuaiser.
Also In This Package
He also said the UAE is a key market for the airline in the GCC, “and the majority of our future guests and passengers and travellers will be from the region as well.”
The airline, which is aiming to launch in the fourth quarter, has hired nearly 500 employees and intends to increase its workforce to 1,000 over the next nine to 12 months.
Airline partnerships are also a key component of Riyadh Air’s strategy to extend its reach beyond its direct routes. Existing partnerships with carriers like Delta, Singapore Airlines, Turkish Airlines, China Eastern, and Air China will allow Riyadh Air to offer connectivity to a wider range of destinations for its passengers.
Future announcements regarding the full guest experience are expected in the coming months, including details on food and beverage, wellness propositions, and in-flight entertainment.
