During IATA's Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Istanbul, the Saudi startup Riyadh Air revealed its striking livery, paralleling its bold entrance into a competitive Middle Eastern aviation market. Labeled as “a perfect blend of cutting-edge technology and timeless elegance," the Boeing 787-9's color scheme will be on display at the upcoming Paris Air Show in June, one of the most important aviation events of the year.
 

In English and Arabic bold billboard text, Riyadh Air is instantly noticeable, with an intricate purple design on the fuselage. A lighter purple on the tail showcases the logo: the letter R encased elegantly in an airplane window. The logo is also present on the engines, in a darker shade of purple and a stripe of neon purple. 

Riyadh Air revealed that this livery will be one of two liveries the airline will operate. The latter livery will be revealed later this year. CEO Tony Douglas, former head of Etihad Airways, added that Riyadh Air's operating code will be RX, per FlightGlobal.

Bold Moves

The livery is a stark departure from the common white fuselage of today. Riyadh Air's livery highlights its bold plans, as the airline aims for its first flights by 2025 and a network of 100 destinations by 2030. 

Riyadh Air is owned by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund and is part of Saudi Arabia's comprehensive Vision 2030 investment plan to diversify the country's economic pathways. With the newly-formed Neom Airlines and pre-existing Saudia, Saudi Arabia hopes to attract 100 million visitors annually to the country.

Riyadh is centrally placed within Saudi Arabia and well-positioned for connections to Africa, Asia, and Europe, similar to its Middle East counterparts in Doha and Dubai. With Riyadh's location, Riyadh Air hopes to capture the connecting traffic that Emirates and Qatar Airways capitalize on. 

The current flag carrier Saudia will focus on local traffic via a hub in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Jeddah is less than 100 km away from Mecca, where people often visit for pilgrimage. Saudia has orders for 39 Boeing 787 Dreamliners but with options for 10 more.

Similarly, Riyadh Air holds orders for 39 Boeing 787 Dreamliners and options for 33 more. These aircraft will represent the backbone of the airline's long-haul fleet. In addition, reports indicate that Riyadh Air will order 150 Boeing 737 MAX jets to add more capacity for the connecting hub. In total, Riyadh Air is looking at 300-400 narrowbodies with a possible Airbus order possible, per the reports.

The National, a UAE media firm, spoke with CEO Tony Douglas during IATA's AGM. He states, “We're in the middle of a narrow-body campaign at the moment and all of our energy is focused on concluding that so we can make an announcement.”

Douglas adds, “It won't be any earlier than the Paris Air Show and it won't be any later than the Dubai Airshow.