Interview: Riyadh Air’s Plan for 2025 and Beyond

PARIS — At the 2025 Paris Air Show, Riyadh Air (RX) finalized its aircraft acquisition, purchasing 25 Airbus A350-1000s, with options for an additional 25 units. The airline had anticipated placing an order for a large widebody in the months leading up to the airshow, with both the Boeing 777X and the Airbus A350-1000 under consideration. 

After the order, Airways sat down with Ian Bradley, Vice President Corporate Communications at Riyadh Air, to learn more about the airline’s ambitions in the context of the new order.

Background

I started with a summer job about 30 years ago in Ireland, working with Aer Lingus (EI). It was a great summer job, involving a range of basic operational tasks: loading aircraft, cleaning, working cargo, catering—everything. It was fun, well-paid, and based at Shannon Airport. That’s when I thought, Yes, I want to work in aviation.

I later moved into the Corporate Affairs department at their headquarters in Dublin, where I spent a year learning from some great people. Then I moved to London to become the PR Manager for the UK and Ireland, representing Aer Lingus. I spent five years in London, which involved frequent travel to and from Ireland.

That was a time when Aer Lingus was starting to gain more popularity and expand significantly, especially from around 2005. I stayed there five years, then ran my own agency for another five years. After that, I became the Director of Communications for American Airlines (AA) for five years, based in London. I handled all communications outside the Americas, including responsibility for regions like Japan, Australia, China, Hong Kong, Korea, and across Europe.

After leaving AA, I joined a tourism group as their Director of Communications for two and a half years. Then, for four years before my current role, I served as Vice President of Corporate Communications at Qatar Airways (QR). That was a fascinating time—we saw the World Cup during that period. Now, for the past two years, I’ve been with Riyadh Air, based in Riyadh. It’s been quite a journey.

On the Aircraft Orders

The A350s provide us with the range and capacity we need to reach distant destinations and support our planned network. The idea is to grow from the A321 into the Boeing 787, and eventually into the A350s as demand builds. Our fleet decisions are based on several factors, including performance, commercial terms, delivery slots, and, of course, cargo capacity.

These campaigns take time. Our planning, commercial, finance, and cargo teams all contribute to making informed decisions. It’s never just about one factor. You can’t look at only the price or the range—you need the right mix of availability, capability, and operating cost.

Our CEO described it best: these decisions are often 51–49; extremely close calls. The aircraft we’ve chosen are all well-matched. That makes the selection process tough but also very strategic.

As for the 787-9 you’ve seen—nicknamed Jamila, which means “beautiful” in Arabic—that’s a leased aircraft from Oman Air. We use it as a technical spare and for training and marketing purposes. It features the Oman Air cabin interior, which we’ll refresh slightly to match our look, but we’ll not fully retrofit it. For a startup, you need a spare aircraft once you reach 15–20 in service, and this fills that role for us.

We’ll take a mix of A321neos and LRs. The LR’s range suits us well for flying deeper into Europe or Southeast Asia. If you map a radius from Riyadh, it reaches the UK, Ireland, and parts of Asia. That’s where we plan to grow. The NEO aircraft will serve more regional routes, including destinations such as Cairo, Dubai, and Istanbul, among others.

Business class configurations will vary depending on the route. The neos will have a more regional-style business class, while the LRs will offer a higher-end experience for longer routes. However, economy class will be consistent across all aircraft, including the Recaro seats we’ve selected.

We’ll maintain consistency in the passenger experience, including lighting, seat stitching, color palette, and materials. In terms of liveries, about one in ten aircraft will wear the darker indigo livery. The other 90% will be in the signature purple. With 182 aircraft on order, that means around 20 will be in the darker scheme.

We want passengers to instantly recognize they’re onboard an RX aircraft—through the look, the feel, the scent, the lighting. Consistency is key. There’s nothing worse than not knowing what to expect in business class from one aircraft to the next. We’re committed to delivering a reliable, premium experience.

First Class Is Coming to the A350-1000

We’ve said all along that First Class will only appear on the A350-1000s, and we’re not in any rush to reveal it. These aircraft won’t arrive until the latter part of the decade. We’ve only just placed the order, and a long design journey lies ahead. There’s a lot of thought going into what the First product should be, and it will be a few years before we’re ready to showcase it.

Compare that to our 787s—we recently announced the business and economy cabins, and those aircraft will go into service by the end of this year. The timeline from reveal to entry into service is under 12 months, which makes sense. But with the A350-1000, we’re designing something entirely new. So even if we revealed a seat now, the market might move on by the time it enters service in three or four years.

We’re building a flagship First product—industry-leading, uniquely Saudi, and aligned with the premium standards expected of us. Our CEO is very involved and detail-oriented, and he has a clear vision for what this product should represent. The A350-1000 will feature a four-class configuration: First, Business, Premium Economy, and Economy. We haven’t yet decided which routes will feature First—it’ll depend on final layouts and route strategies.

On Airline Partnerships, Alliances:

We’ve signed nine major airline partnerships to date—five with SkyTeam members and four with Star Alliance carriers. Rather than aligning with a single alliance, we’re taking a best-in-class approach. We’re selecting strategic partners based on geography, network strength, and brand reputation.

The idea is to create a virtual global network. For instance, instead of launching long-haul routes to Australia ourselves—which would require significant aircraft and resources—we can partner with Singapore Airlines. This gives us one-stop access to Australia, New Zealand, and beyond, leveraging their extensive network.

We’ve formed similar partnerships with Delta Air Lines (DL, SkyTeam), Turkish Airlines (TK), and others, giving us deep regional access and support. Our goal isn’t to join an alliance at this point, but to build strong bilateral relationships that serve our network and our customers best. Each partner was carefully chosen for what they bring to the table—reach, expertise, and credibility.

There’s one key market still missing from our map: India. We’re having productive discussions with Indian carriers, including IndiGo, and we’re hopeful about a future partnership. It has to be the right fit for both sides.