First look inside the new rival to Emirates, Qatar Airways

Riyadh Air, the fourth Gulf super-connector to take to the skies after Emirates, Qatar Airways and Etihad, will start flying daily from Saudi Arabia to London on October 26. Dubai will be the second international destination, followed by 98 others over the next five years (including, at some stage, Australia).

This week, I was one of the first to get up close and personal with the planes that will ply those first routes.

“We have 182 aircraft on order and will be getting one new plane and soon two or three every month,” Tony Douglas, the British chief executive of the new carrier, said in an interview in Riyadh this earlier this month.

The first flights between London Heathrow Terminal 4 and Riyadh will be test flights. Full passenger services, on the airline’s first Boeing 787 Dreamliner, are likely to begin early next year, with tickets going on sale in December. Fares will “offer value,” Douglas says.

Riyadh Air is targeting London as its first international route

Routes and pricing

Analysts estimate an economy return on the opening route to London will be about $1600, premium economy $2400 and business class $9200 – 10-15 per cent more expensive than rivals British Airways or Virgin Atlantic.

The London to Riyadh service will leave at 9.30am and arrive in Riyadh in the evening. The return flight to London will be overnight, landing at 7.30am. London has been chosen as the inaugural route since it is the most profitable route for all the Gulf carriers.

Cabin and in-flight experience

Cabin crew will be dressed in uniforms which hark back to the golden age of air travel. Women will wear pillbox hats and men sharp-cut suits.

On board, Riyadh Air has eschewed the bling style of Emirates and Etihad. The cabin design is sober and elegant with a dark indigo and matte gold colour palette, soft blue and gold lighting, and subtle geometric Arabic motifs on surfaces.

Economy

The economy seats are about as comfortable as economy gets but with just 31 inches (79 centimetres) of pitch – the measure of legroom airlines use – the cabin feels a little cramped. Emirates offers up to 34 inches (84 centimetres).

Streaming-quality Wi-Fi will be free at the back of the bus and in all other classes if you join the airline’s Sfeer loyalty program – you can sign up on board.

Premium economy

Things get much better as you advance up the cabin to the pointy end. Passengers in premium economy will get a Riyadh Air hoodie to help them to relax and keep warm, plus slippers – a first for any carrier in this class. All food will be served on bone china with crystal glassware.

The seats have an extra layer of fabric upholstery for comfort, generous recline, sturdy leg rests, and a wraparound headrest for privacy with a reading light built in. The TV screen is the biggest possible given the size of the seat backs.

Business class

Business-class passengers will get a full athleisure outfit with trousers and a hoodie. The Riyadh Air branding is very discreet “so you can easily wear it off the plane,” says Douglas. Snag the front-row Business Elite seats and you will get a tote bag, too. The wraparound head rests in each suite have speakers built in so you don’t have to wear headphones. The only duff note is that the door to each suite does not fully close, nor reach the floor.

Riyadh Air’s first class will debut on its Airbus A350s which will go into service in 2030. The cabin will have a maximum of eight seats to allow for fluctuations in demand. The appetite for super premium travel in the Gulf rises and falls in line with the price of oil.

First- and business-class passengers will enjoy free chauffeur drive to and from Riyadh Airport in an 80-kilometre radius. A paid-for service to and from overseas airports, partnering with a ride-share company, likely Uber, is in the works.

What can travellers look forward to?

Douglas insists that since Riyadh Air is being set up “with a blank sheet of paper, we can do things in new, different – world class – ways.” This will help to justify any price premium over rivals.

The first difference passengers will notice is that although Riyadh Air will have a website, the best way to book a flight will be on its mobile app. “We are digitally native and have more in common with a tech company than any other airline,” Douglas says.

The airline’s app will not only offer the usual seat selection and electronic boarding passes, it will enable group or family bookings on a single order. “You won’t have to book separately for every family member with a different reference for each and if you change your plans you can change them for everyone or for just one person with just a few clicks.”

A new online concierge service will automatically offer not only the usual hotel deals, it will also tell you what’s on in your destination during your stay and offer booking services.

The Sfeer programme breaks new ground. Passengers will earn the usual tier and frequent flyer points but the points will never expire – unlike at its Gulf rivals Emirates and Etihad. What’s more, tier and frequent flyer points can be traded between family members or those in your wider Sfeer group.

“I can give my tier points and miles to other members and transfer business-class lounge passes and extra luggage allowances. They can do the same for me,” says Douglas.

Riyadh Air will partner with Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Flying Club members will be able to earn tier points and spend Flying Club miles on Riyadh Air.

Saudi ambitions

The creation of Riyadh Air is a key plank of Saudi Arabia’s aim to become a major tourist destination and business hub by 2030. It is hosting the 2034 FIFA World Cup and the 2030 World Expo. “The air connectivity for this fast-growing G20 economy is simply not good enough,” says Douglas.

Some people, particularly women and LGBT travellers, may be reluctant to fly on a Saudi airline.

Douglas thinks attitudes will shift over time. “It was exactly the same narrative with Qatar Airways when it started. The same with Emirates further back. I say: ‘Go, look, see.’ Visit the Kingdom and form your own opinion. People who do say: ‘This wasn’t what we were expecting’.”

Alcohol is banned in Saudi Arabia and that applies at 39,000 feet anywhere in the world on an airline which is owned by the Public Investment Fund, Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund. Will Western travellers really book a flight on an airline that only offers a Virgin Mary?

“We’ll follow the law of the land,” Douglas says. “The law of the land at the moment is Virgin Mary. If that changes, it will be anything it changes to be.”

The first bottle shop recently opened in Riyadh and, privately, hoteliers are preparing for the loosening of rules on serving alcohol, starting in restaurants and, perhaps, moving on to bars. Many observers think it won’t be long before guests will be enjoying a cheeky G&T if not in Riyadh Air’s snazzy new Hafawa (“Welcome”) lounges but in the skies above.

Chocks away and bottoms up.

The Telegraph, London