Startup Riyadh Air plans trio of new plane orders – CEO

Startup Riyadh Air plans trio of new plane orders – CEO

ISTANBUL - Saudi Arabia's new airline Riyadh Air is in the midst of a three-part inaugural fleet acquisition including ongoing talks with Airbus and Boeing to buy a significant number of narrow-body jets, Chief Executive Tony Douglas said.

The creation of a second Saudi national airline, with industry veteran Douglas as its CEO, was announced alongside an order for up to 72 Boeing 787s in March, as the kingdom moves to diversify its economy and serve over 100 destinations by 2030.

Interviewed on the sidelines of a global airlines meeting in Istanbul, Douglas declined to give the size of the planned follow-up order for narrowbody jets, but told Reuters: "It's not going to be insignificant by any stretch of the imagination."

He added: "That might not be our last order either".

Bloomberg News reported last week that Boeing was working on a deal to sell at least 150 Boeing 737 MAX jets to Riyadh Air.

Douglas said it was too early to decide the new order, which would be finalised after this year's Paris Airshow but before next year's Farnborough event in Britain - a window that appears to leave room for an announcement at November's Dubai Airshow.

The launch of a new airline is seen