TBM Staff - Mumbai Saudi Arabia is set to get a new national carrier, Riyadh Air as the Kingdom is keen to establish itself as a tourism hot spot. Saudi’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman made announcement of Riyadh Air, with industry veteran Tony Douglas as its Chief Executive, reports Reuters.
Riyadh Air will serve more than 100 destinations around the world by 2030, making use of the Kingdom’s location between Asia, Africa and Europe, state news agency SPA said.
The new airline is expected to add USD 20 billion to Saudi Arabia’s non-oil GDP growth and create more than 200,000 jobs both directly and indirectly, it said.
Riyadh Air is wholly owned by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund (PIF), which has more than USD 600 billion in assets and is the main driver of the Kingdom’s efforts to diversify its economy and wean itself off oil. (Source: Reuters)
