Saudi Arabia’s flyadeal plans to order Airbus A330neo jets

The carrier is likely to announce the order for the upgraded A330-900 variant in the coming weeks

Saudi budget airline flyadeal is finalising a deal to order 10 Airbus A330neo jets in its first full-blown expansion into wide-body planes as the kingdom pursues a surge of spending on aviation, industry sources said on Tuesday.

The low-cost subsidiary of state carrier Saudia is likely to announce the order for the upgraded A330-900 variant in the coming weeks after comparing it with Boeing’s smaller 787-9, and the first jets are expected to arrive in 2027, the sources said.

An order for 10 A330-900s would be worth some $1.1bn after typical discounts, according to estimated delivery prices from Cirium Ascend.

flyadeal has also negotiated purchase rights for an additional 10 A330neos, the sources said. A purchase right locks in prices without specifying delivery dates and can be held for longer than an option, which includes prices and delivery slots.

Saudi Arabia’s aviation sector is expanding as the kingdom invests billions of dollars in its Vision 2030 plan to diversify its economy away from fossil fuels and boost its private sector.

The latest flyadeal move comes months after competing Saudi budget carrier flynas, which is privately owned, placed a provisional order for 75 Airbus jets, including 15 A330neos. Startup Riyadh Air has ordered both Boeing and Airbus jets.