Dubai: Saudi Arabia’s new airline, Riyadh Air, plans to start commercially operating by the end of the first half of 2025, chief operating officer Peter Bellew said on Tuesday on the sidelines of the Singapore Airshow.
The airline is building a fleet of aircraft to service 100 destinations by 2030.
Saudia and Riyadh Air, the flag carriers of Saudi Arabia, signed a preliminary agreement to support the kingdom's burgeoning aviation sector, with plans to collaborate further in the future.
The pact covers a comprehensive interline and codeshare agreement that will allow passengers to connect between sectors operated by either Saudia or Riyadh Air, the carriers announced in a statement at the Dubai Airshow in 2023.
Saudi Arabia is seeking to attract more tourists and turn the country into a logistics hub as part of Saudi Vision 2030 strategy to diversify from oil.
Saudi Arabia has set a goal for the tourism sector to contribute 10 per cent to gross domestic product by 2030, up from 3 per cent in 2019.
To reach its goals, Saudi Arabia is investing billions of dollars to modernise its airports and buy new planes to improve its air transport connectivity.
