Riyadh Air, the new national carrier of Saudi Arabia, completed its inaugural passenger flight on October 26, 2025.
Flight RX401 departed Riyadh King Khalid International Airport (RUH) at 3.26am, landing at London Heathrow (LHR) six hours and 48 minutes later, all times local.
On this inaugural flight the entirety of the passage were staff members of Riyadh Air and of the Public Investment Fund (PIF), the Saudi sovereign wealth fund, which is backing the new carrier, as well as partners and other invited guests. The policy to make the flights available to a limited number of company insiders first will remain in place for the next few flights.
Riyadh Air is expecting to connect the Saudi and British capitals on a daily basis as it prepares to roll out its ambitious expansion plans, which call for a network of 100 destinations within a period of five years. The next destination to be served by Riyadh Air is expected to be Dubai (DXB).
The London service is operated by a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner (registration HZ-RXX) which Riyadh Air has been operating since January 2025 for crew familiarization and certification purposes. This aircraft is on lease from Oman Air and it is not yet part of the initial order for 72 Dreamliners (39 firm orders and 33 options) that the Saudi carrier placed with Boeing during the 2023 Paris Air Show. That first order with Boeing has since been followed by two additional orders for Airbus aircraft (60 A321neo and up to 50 A350 aircraft).
The first truly new aircraft are expected to be delivered to Riyadh Air before the end of 2025.
Riyadh Air received its Air Operator Certificate (AOC) from the Saudi civilian aviation authority (GACA) in April 2025.
