Exclusive | Riyadh Air in code-share talks with Cathay Pacific to grow Middle East, Asia route network
Talk of a partnership followed the bulk order of 60 Airbus A321neo aircraft, announced this week during the annual FII conference in the Saudi capital
Riyadh Air, backed by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, is in talks to work with Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific Airways to expand each other’s route network, after its multibillion-dollar order of 60 Airbus jets this week, said a senior executive.
The cooperation may “very possibly” include a code-sharing accord for the two carriers to fly passengers on each other’s aircraft to a wider network of destinations, Riyadh Air’s chief financial officer Adam Boukadida said in an interview with the Post on Wednesday. He emphasised that it was “too early” to specify details.
The aircraft order and the potential code-share with one of Asia’s biggest carriers are the latest steps by the year-old Riyadh Air to reach “100 different destinations, at the minimum, by 2030”, Boukadida said.
A code-sharing accord is a commonly used partnership among global airlines. It can help Riyadh Air tap into Cathay Pacific’s network of over 80 global destinations to expand the Saudi carrier’s routes quickly, while giving Cathay Pacific access to more connections in the Middle East.
“Our focus is connecting the world to Riyadh, and Riyadh to the world”, so “we are always open [in] looking for the right partnership”, Boukadida said. “Cathay is a great airline. I have flown with them before.”
