With Saudi Arabia’s Big Order For Boeing 787s, The Widebody Makes A Tentative Comeback

With Saudi Arabia’s Big Order For Boeing 787s, The Widebody Makes A Tentative Comeback

Share to Linkedin As part of its plans to expand tourism, the Saudi government intends to build a mammoth airport in the capital Riyadh over 22 square miles with six runways, including the terminal shown here in an illustration. You can't accuse Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman of reluctance to spend money as he tries to diversify his nation's economy away from oil. Under his rule, the kingdom plans to invest $500 billion in a city consisting of two parallel 100-mile-long skyscrapers, luxury resorts are popping up around the country and now the kingdom is launching a new internationally focused airline to further its goal of becoming a tourist attraction. Boeing BA is benefitting to the tune of tens of billions of dollars. Riyadh Air, launched Sunday, is buying 39 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners, each with a list price of $292 million, with options for 33 more. It's unclear why the kingdom decided to establish a new airline rather than expand flag carrier Saudi Arabian Airlines (Saudia), which, in a puzzling development, is also ordering 39 Dreamliners, an unspecified mix of 787-9s and the larger 787-10 (list: $338 million), plus options for 10 more. Altogether it's the fifth-largest order by