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Riyadh Air's Inaugural B787-9 Flight and New Dreamliner Simulator

By:

Pilotcenter.net

Riyadh Air recently marked a significant milestone as its first operational Boeing 787-9 took to the skies in the distinctive Saudi carrier’s livery. The inaugural flight of this aircraft (registration HZ-RXX), formerly in service with Oman Air, traveled from Riyadh-King Khalid International Airport (RUH) in Saudi Arabia to Istanbul (IST) in Turkey for what appears to be crew training and familiarization purposes. This development comes as Riyadh Air gears up for its commercial launch scheduled for the third quarter of 2025.

There is speculation surrounding the purpose of the recent 4-hour flight between Riyadh and Istanbul, with questions arising about whether it was purely for training or if the aircraft required technical procedures in Turkey. Notably, this test aircraft, which arrived in Saudi Arabia on January 15, 2025, is not part of Riyadh Air's existing order for 72 brand-new Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners. Industry insiders are also eagerly anticipating additional widebody aircraft orders from Riyadh Air in the first quarter of the same year.

In a proactive move towards enhancing pilot training, Riyadh Air announced on January 27, 2025, that it had obtained an operational certificate from the General Authority of Civil Aviation of Saudi Arabia (GACA) to utilize an advanced Boeing 787-9 RX7000 full flight simulator for training purposes. When reached for elaboration, Riyadh Air remained unavailable for comment at the time of publication. Stay tuned for more updates as Riyadh Air takes significant strides towards its upcoming commercial operations!

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