Saudi Riyadh Air is wading back into the jet market after buying dozens of Airbus and Boeing planes and aims to finalise a new deal involving the industry's largest twin-aisle jets early next year, its chief executive said.
The country's newest national airline is weighing up the Boeing 777X and the Airbus A350-1000 and expects to make a decision in the first or second quarters of 2025, CEO Tony Douglas told Reuters.
Riyadh Air last year ordered 39 Boeing 787 wide-body jets with options for another 33 as part of a wider deal also involving existing national carrier Saudia, and last week it added a firm order for 60 Airbus A321neo-family aircraft.
Douglas reiterated that the airline, which plans to start operations next year, ultimately aimed to operate more than 200 aircraft.
Douglas told Reuters in a separate interview last week that Riyadh Air would start formal talks for a new order for large wide-body aircraft within two months.
