Riyadh Air begins flying with “all-star cast”

Riyadh Air has taken to the skies with what CEO Tony Douglas describes as “an all-star cast” of pilots and cabin crew.

The new Saudi Arabian flag carrier flew a Boeing 787, borrowed from sibling Saudia, between Riyadh and Jeddah as the first step in obtaining the necessary Air Operator Certificate before starting commercial flights in mid-2025.

“Across September, October and November we start our certification flights (with) a reasonably extensive network of flying,” Douglas tells Executive Traveller.

“As part of that certification process, we’ve already got our pilots and we're delighted, it’s an all-star cast from all sorts of different airlines, including test pilots from Boeing.”

“We’ve also had three intakes of cabin crew, who we also need for AOC flying.”

Some of those pilots and crew already made their public debut for Riyadh Air in July’s Haute Couture Week in Paris.

Part of Riyadh Air's elegant 'cabin crew collection'.

They took to the catwalk in stylish uniforms of cashmere outerwear, fine wool dresses and trousers, custom leather footwear and iconic pillbox hats, all in Riyadh Air’s signature amethyst and inspired by the ’golden age’ of 1950s airline fashion.

“Are they all supermodels?” Douglas poses, before answering his own question. “Of course they’re all supermodels!”

Part of Riyadh Air's elegant 'cabin crew collection'.

“We’re in the hospitality business, and human interaction is of course a big part of that. Now if you are a member of our cabin crew, and we dress you where you feel like you’re a million dollars, I would argue that you are far more likely to want to make me the guest feel like I’m $10 million dollars.”

That passenger experience is a key part of how Douglas believes Riyadh Air will differentiate itself in the crowded skies, and one of his touchstones is the drive to “bring more glamour back to commercial aviation (which has) kind of dumbed itself down over time, like many things do in life.”

“I have the strong belief that if you feel that you look great, and you've been inducted and trained to the highest standards, you are infinitely more likely to put charm, empathy and grace into the way in which you serve and you make the guests feel.”

Riyadh Air CEO Tony Douglas wants to bring glamour back to commercial aviation.

However, when Riyadh Air’s own Boeing 787s begin carrying passengers in mid-2025, they’ll do so without the expected opulence of private first class suites.

Instead of first class suites which “need twice the real estate, and by definition would not be commercially sustainable”, Douglas wants to elevate business class to the highest possible standard, “as opposed to throwing real estate (at first class) in a non-financially sustainable way.”

The result will be what he terms a ‘Mercedes Maybach’ business class, finished to the highest standards and fitted with everything from sliding doors to large HD video screens, wireless charging and fast free WiFi.

Two European cities will chosen as the first destinations for the inaugural flights of Riyadh Air’s Boeing 787s, Douglas tells Executive Traveller.

“We’ll launch with three airplanes, because you can’t do it with any less than three.”

“We’ll be flying from Riyadh to, let’s say, ‘European capital A’ and back,” Douglas maps out.

“Then the airplane will turn around and do a shorter leg on thick routes within the region – to Jeddah, for example. It will then come back to Riyadh, turn around and then do ‘European city B’, and so on.”

Riyadh Air plans to extend the reach of its Boeing 787 network to all corners of the globe.

And with Riyadh Air having locked in an order for 39 Boeing 787s, with the option to buy 33 more, Douglas predicts “a drum-beat of deliveries” across the back half of 2025 and well beyond.

“The network builds out on every additional aircraft that arrives. Every time we get another plane we’ll just increase the number of those cities.”

With a steady flow of jets, Riyadh Air aims to add an average of two destinations every month, with Singapore tipped as an early starter as Riyadh Air pushes into Asia.

“Within the first five years you’ll then see pretty much every capital city within Europe, all the big capital cities within the Far East, most of the big capital cities within Central Asia, obviously within our own region of the Gulf, the Indian subcontinent for very obvious reasons as well, and the eastern seaboard of North America.”

Riyadh Air intends to fly to Australia and New Zealand, Douglas confirms, “but in the early days we certainly won’t have the fleet and maybe not the flow” of passengers.

“So in the early stage of building our network, we’re more likely to put on a ‘thick route’ into Singapore, giving people a wonderful guest experience on Riyadh Air – and on an RX codeshare ticket, the final leg (to Australia or New Zealand) on an equally incredible product and experience with Singapore Airlines.”