The Lancastrian boss of a new Saudi Arabian airline plans to serve 100 cities with a fleet of 200 planes as part of the Kingdom’s bid to become a global tourism hub.
But instead of targeting the Middle East’s dominant airlines, Tony Douglas is competing to build a “world-class national airline” by winning back Saudi travelers who have been neglected for too long.
Douglas, 61, says limited international flights from Saudi airports have left locals dependent on hubs in the United Arab Emirates and Qatar for connections to the rest of the world.
That’s despite the IMF forecasting that the Saudi economy will be the second fastest growing in the world this year.
Mr Douglas is the person largely responsible for overhauling the country’s connectivity as he oversees plans for the launch of Riyadh Air.
His start-up airline will begin services next summer, spearheading an effort by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to diversify the Saudi economy.
Starting a new airline from scratch is a daunting task at the best of times, as the vast majority of start-up airlines go bankrupt within a few years.
Yet the challenge facing Douglas is even greater, with Riyadh Air poised to compete with the might of Emirates, Qatar Airways and Etihad.
Dubai-based Emirates ranks as the world’s largest airline on international routes and all three are industry heavyweights with global networks spanning five continents.
However, Mr Douglas, who was born 13 miles from Liverpool in Ormskirk and jumped from Etihad to take on the Saudi job, told the Telegraph that his mission is not to beat the Gulf giants at their own game by competing for global passenger flows.
Instead, Riyadh Air will seek to regain the traffic that Saudi Arabia considers its rightful own while providing the improved global connections demanded by Vision 2030, which aims to increase the number of tourists in Saudi Arabia attract up to 100 million per year.
He said: “It is no secret that Saudi Arabia has long fallen far behind in global connectivity, and there is no good example of a sustainable, fast-growing economy anywhere in the world that does not have good connectivity.
“The Kingdom needs a new world-class national airline, its own version of Emirates and Qatar Airways, and the answer is Riyadh Air.”
Mr Douglas, speaking at the International Air Transport Association’s annual summit in Dubai, said Qatar Air’s base in Doha – a 45-minute flight from Riyadh – sees Saudi nationals as its largest market for business and first class bookings.
More than 80% of the people who use the airport fly on to another destination, the boss said.
He said: “The cliché is that Emirates has been India’s national airline for the last 40 years. The parallel is that Qatar Airways is the national airline of Saudi Arabia, at least for premium traffic.”
It’s a similar story for foreigners drawn to Saudi Arabia by the opportunities created by the economy’s $1 trillion diversification plan. Only they often use Emirates and Dubai to get there.
Mr Douglas said: “A world of talent is pouring into Riyadh given what is going on with the economy, the giga projects and the other economic diversification themes. Consultants, bankers, financiers, architects.
“But they fly to Dubai to reach Riyadh because there are not enough direct flights.” Demand is so high that the route has become the sixth busiest in the world, he said.
That an oil-rich state with the largest economy in the Arab world and 36 million people should be so dependent on smaller neighbors, with a third of the total population, is no longer acceptable given Saudi Arabia’s growth plans, Douglas said.
He said: “It’s completely wrong. So that is our mandate – to change that. We are super excited about it.”
Not that Riyadh Air plans to enter the fray alone. Behind the scenes, the company has been busy recruiting a network of partners that will allow it to sell tickets around the world under its flight code, but who will carry passengers on its own planes for part of the journey.
Riyadh Air last year signed a partnership agreement with Turkish Airways, which has the largest network of any airline, serving more than 300 destinations in 120 countries.
It has also entered into an agreement with sister operator Saudia, based in Jeddah, from where it operates the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca.
Mr Douglas significantly expanded his airline’s support network last week, announcing partnerships with Singapore Airlines, Air China and China Eastern, three of Asia’s largest airlines, as well as Egyptair.
He said: “At the moment everyone is very interested in Saudi Arabia, which has given us a unique position in conversations with the big international A-listers.”
Singapore Air will offer forward connections to eight destinations in Australia and three in New Zealand, as well as locations in Southeast Asia. Meanwhile, Turkish Airlines will direct passengers to Central Europe.
Riyadh Air is now targeting a partner in the US, as well as Western Europe and India, as it looks to complete its alliances.
The airline has yet to unveil its own route network, but will serve all its partners’ major bases and begin flying to every major city in Western Europe, the northeastern US, the Indian subcontinent and the Far East within the first three years. as well as the Gulf, he said.
To achieve this ambition, Riyadh Air has ordered 72 Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft with seating for 290 people, with the airline also expected to announce a range of new narrowbody jets soon.
The airline will begin accumulating test flight hours later this year to qualify for the operating certificate by the end of 2024.
In preparation for next year’s launch, Riyadh Air is also trying to establish its brand on the global stage.
The company recently announced that local Saudi couturier Ashi, who has dressed Beyonce and Penelope Cruz, would create a clothing line for cabin crew that will be unveiled in Paris later this month. The look will be “a striking, elegant and sophisticated fashion statement,” Mr Douglas said.
The airline has ordered two different colors for its planes, which it says “look like a billionaire’s Gulfstream G650 business jet,” rather than commercial aircraft.
Riyadh Air’s interiors will be just as striking, he claimed, with the overall effect harkening back to what he called the “halcyon days” of Pan Am flights in the 1960s.
The airline aims to operate at a global level within three years, ready to cater to a range of global events expected to take place in Saudi Arabia, including the 2029 Winter Olympics, Expo 2030 in Riyadh and the World Cup from 2034. .
Mr Douglas said the goal is clear: “This is primarily about Saudi Arabian connectivity. It’s not going to be a transfer model that quickly, because there is so much demand for flights to Riyadh alone.
“The place is super fast right now.”