105 aircraft were ordered from European manufacturer Airbus, with a total cost of US$19 billion
Saudia, Saudi Arabia’s state airline, announced on Monday (May 20, 2024) the purchase of 105 aircraft from Airbus. The announcement was made by the general director of the Saudia Group, Ibrahim Al-Omar, in a speech at the Future Aviation Forum, in Riyadh, the Saudi capital.
“The Saudia Group today announces the largest deal in the history of Saudi aviation”, said Al-Omar, without specifying what makes the purchase the biggest deal in history: the value of the order or the number of planes acquired. Of the 105 pieces of equipment purchased, 93 are the Airbus321neo model and 12 are the Airbus 320neo. The order totaled US$19 billion.
The fleet of the Saudia Group – which controls the airline Saudia and the carrier Flyadeal – has 93 planes from the European company and 51 from the North American company Boeing, according to the Saudi website. In addition, another 39 Airbus aircraft had already been ordered.
According to Al-Omar, the purchase is part of Saudi Arabia’s plan to diversify its economy, which is highly dependent on oil. The objective is to attract 150 million tourists to the country per year by 2030.
“We are increasing flight and seat capacity at our existing 100+ destinations across 4 continents, with plans for further expansion”, said the executive.
The Saudi civil aviation authority said the sector contributed $53 billion to the country’s economy in 2023 and supported 958,000 jobs.
With investments in 6 airports and other projects, the objective is for civil aviation to contribute around US$2 billion to Saudi Arabia’s GDP (gross domestic product) and create 35,000 new jobs by 2030.
The Future Aviation Forum takes place from Monday to Wednesday (20 to 22 May) at the King Abdulaziz International Conference Center, in Riyadh. The main theme of the event is increasing global connectivity.
Source: https://www.poder360.com.br/internacional/arabia-saudita-anuncia-sua-maior-compra-de-avioes-da-historia/
