Big Airbus order overshadows Boeing at Riyadh conference

FE Team | Published: May 21, 2024 23:30:42

RIYADH, May 21 (Reuters): Saudia Group, owner of Saudia airline and budget carrier flyadeal, placed a hefty order for 105 Airbus narrow-body aircraft on Monday, marking a bounce-back for the European planemaker just months after Boeing had been tipped to win more Saudi business.
Ibrahim Al Omar, Saudia Group's director general, described the order for 12 A320neo and 93 A321neo single-aisle aircraft as the largest in the country's history.
The state-owned group said Saudia would be receiving 54 of the A321neo jets, while flyadeal would acquire 12 A320neos and the remaining A321neos.
None of the parties disclosed the value, but organisers of the Future Aviation Forum in Riyadh where the order was announced pegged it close to $19 billion.
Airbus does not publish prices, but the A321neo was worth close to $130 million each at list prices released in 2018. Flyadeal CEO Steven Greenway said Saudia got the order at a discount, as is typical in the industry.
Saudi Arabia is spending big on becoming a new regional aviation hub by launching new airline Riyadh Air, announcing a massive six-runway airport and ordering 78 Boeing 787 Dreamliners last year.
The latest announcement, made in the Versailles-like King Abdulaziz Conference Center styled with airplane-themed runways on the floor and faux planes serving as meeting rooms, unexpectedly leapfrogged a possible order from Boeing, whose presence was muted.
In November, Saudia Arabia's newest airline Riyadh Air said it was weeks away from placing a large narrow-body order, which Bloomberg News reported involved the Boeing 737 MAX.
Months later, no such order has surfaced, and Monday's announcement placed Airbus firmly in the spotlight.
"What happened was the media three weeks later spent every hour of every day writing negative stories about commercial aviation," Riyadh Air CEO Tony Douglas told Reuters on Monday.