Mohammad bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia and Chairman of the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF), has made an announcement regarding the establishment of a wholly owned PIF company called “Riyadh Air”.
This new airline will utilize Saudi Arabia’s strategic location between Asia, Africa, and Europe, which will enable Riyadh to become a global hub for transportation, trade, and tourism.
Yasir Al Rumayyan, Governor of PIF, will chair the airline, while Tony Douglas, with over 40 years of experience in the aviation, transportation, and logistics industries, will serve as the Chief Executive Officer. The airline’s senior management team will include experts from Saudi Arabia and internationally, according to WAM.
The airline is projected to contribute approximately $20B to non-oil GDP growth and create over 200,000 direct and indirect job opportunities.