Where will Riyadh Air fly, and will it be dry?

Saudi Arabia’s new flag carrier Riyadh Air will take to the skies in the middle of 2025, in what is arguably the biggest start-up and potentially the greatest shake-up in the airline scene for decades.

“We’re talking about connecting to well over 100 destinations,” says CEO Tony Douglas, with a fleet of modern single-aisle and twin-aisle jets dressed in striking striking purple-hued livery carrying Riyadh Air’s RX flight code to almost every corner of the globe.

Riyadh Air is a cornerstone of Saudi Arabia’s plans to open up to the Western world.

Boot-strapped by a $50bn war chest from the oil-rich kingdom’s Public Investment Fund, the carrier will take advantage of the same geography powering Gulf rivals Emirates, Etihad and Qatar Airways, which puts 80% of the world’s population within an eight-hour flight of Riyadh.

Executive Traveller caught up with Douglas ahead of the opening of Riyadh Air’s new headquarters, which ooze the vibe of a high-tech digital tech startup.

“It’s got more in common with a Microsoft headquarters, a Google headquarters, an Apple Cupertino type of headquarters than any conventional airline you've ever been around before,” Douglas tells Executive Traveller.

“We’ve done that deliberately because our purpose statement is that we are a digitally-led business that enables travel… we’re trying to make quite clear is that Riyadh Air is not to be confused with a conventional airline.”

But as an airline, even if not a conventional one, Riyadh Air still needs to begin with the building blocks of planes and routes, plus the added question of will alcohol be served on those planes and during those flights. 

Where will Riyadh Air fly?

When Riyadh Air takes wing in mid-2025, it will start small out of sheer necessity, but “scale to size” very rapidly, Douglas tells Executive Traveller.

Two European cities will chosen as the first destinations for the inaugural flights of Riyadh Air’s Boeing 787s, which Douglas promises will offer a ‘Mercedes Maybach’ business class and a premium economy that’s closer to business than economy.

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

The first Riyadh Air 787 will begin crew-only training flights in September so the carrier can be granted its Air Operator’s Certificate.

“We get a second aircraft following, but there’s not an awful lot we can do with it until we get the third aircraft because obviously then we’ve got a tech spare.”

So how will Riyadh Air’s nascent network take shape?

“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.”

Building the Riyadh Air network

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.”

But it’ll take time to reach that target of 100+ destinations, and this is also where – especially in the early years – Riyadh Air will rely on a portfolio of “strategic partners”.

That roster already includes the likes of Air China, China Eastern, Singapore Airlines and Turkish Airlines, and Douglas tips, “a big North American” carrier yet to be announced.

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 connect to, let’s say, eight cities in Australia and three in New Zealand.”

“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.”

And while the 787s tackle Riyadh Air’s medium- to long-range routes, a fleet of single-aisle jets will blanket the region.

Douglas indicates a contract has already been inked, but won’t say if it’s with Airbus or Boeing – although it’s worth noting that Airbus currently lists 195 undisclosed orders across the A320/A321 series, placed between December 2023 and April 2024.

“We’ve got our positions covered on narrow-body jets, and we’ll play that card in the coming months,” Douglas says.

Will Riyadh Air be ‘dry’?

And will alcohol be served on those Riyadh Air flights, or even in the sumptuous Riyadh Air business class lounge soon to begin construction at the airline’s home at King Khalid International Airport?

Douglas responds with an assuredly diplomatic line.

“It’s very straightforward, really: we’ll work within the legal framework that is present at any point in time.”

“At the moment, alcohol is prohibited within the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and therefore we will work with that as being the current legislation. If over time things change, we’ll adapt and adjust accordingly.”

At the moment… current legislation… if over time things change… these carefully-composed phrases seem framed against speculation Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman will allow exceptions to the conservative kingdom’s ban on alcohol as part of an ambitious agenda to develop the nation as a regional trade, finance and tourism hub.

The first small steps have already been taken, with the opening in February this year of a liquor shop in Riyadh selling beer, wine and spirits exclusively to non-Muslim diplomats of foreign counties.

Other Gulf states, including the United Arab Emirates, have allowed non-Muslims to drink in hotels and licensed restaurants for several years.

Read more on Riyadh Air:

• Riyadh Air CEO promises ‘Mercedes Maybach’ business class
• Riyadh Air says yes to partnerships, no to joining an airline alliance