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Airbus A320neo family aircraft for Saudia and Flyadeal
Saudia Group has signed a firm order for an additional 93 Airbus A321neos and 12 A320neos to be shared between its full-service carrier Saudia and LCC Flyadeal.
Announced May 20 at the Future Aviation Forum in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, the order substantially increases the state-owned airline group’s Airbus backlog.
Saudia will be allocated 54 of the A321neos. The Aviation Week Network Fleet Discovery database shows that the carrier already had 13 A321neos and 15 A321XLRs on firm order, plus options on 20 A320neos.
Meanwhile, Flyadeal will receive the 12 A320neos and remaining 39 A321neos. The LCC already had 10 A320neos on order. No timeline was released for when the 105 aircraft would arrive.
Founded in 2016, Flyadeal has an in-service fleet of 31 A320-family aircraft—20 A320neos and 11 A320ceos, according to Fleet Discovery. Saudia’s narrowbody fleet is older with seven A321neos in service alongside 36 A320ceos and 13 A320ceos.
The order is the latest piece in Saudi Arabia’s massive expansion into commercial aviation, driven by its Vision 2030 plan to diversify the kingdom’s economy away from oil. Riyadh’s stated aim is to expand destinations served directly from the country to 250 by the end of the decade and attract 150 million visitors per year by then. Saudi airlines are expected to be carrying more than 300 million passengers annually by 2030 and the capacity of Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport is to quadruple.
“Saudia’s purchase is a clear demonstration of the strength of the Saudi aviation sector which saw a 26% increase in passengers and a 16% increase in flights in 2023,” said Abdulaziz Al Duailej, president of the country’s General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA).
Saudia’s order is set to be followed by the first narrowbody commitment from state-backed startup Riyadh Air, which plans to launch services in 2025. Riyadh Air CEO Tony Douglas teased that the airline has “a narrowbody position secured,” without disclosing the OEM. Riyadh Air previously announced an order for Boeing 787-9s in March 2023, and Douglas says its next twin-aisle order is already in the works.
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