Saudi Arabia's NEOM Is Launching Its Own Airline

Back in 2019, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia opened its doors to tourists for the first time, establishing a visa allowance for residents from 49 countries (previous visits were mainly made for business and religious purposes). Since then, it has officially announced numerous new tourism and development plans — among them is the Red Sea Project, a brand-new luxury resort and lifestyle development set to open on Saudi Arabia’s west coast, being built in stages starting this year all the way to 2030.

Another project in the works is NEOM — a futuristic planned development where people will live and work in the desert along the shores of the Red Sea. Upon its completion, NEOM is set to include technologically-advanced residential space, luxury hotels and resorts, entertainment venues and a multi-sector business hub — according to its website, it’s ultimately intended to be "an opportunity of unprecedented scope for sustainable living, technological innovation and human progress." In particular, NEOM will also be home to The Line, a residential development that's expected to offer sustainable housing for up to 9 million people with no cars or roads, relying on 100% renewable energy and reserving 95% of the land for nature.

Recently, NEOM announced that the development will also launch its own airline to expedite travel for its many future residents and travelers who hope to visit. Once the airline launches, it will be the third state-owned airline in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

When will NEOM Airlines open for business?

Currently, NEOM Airlines is planning its official launch to occur between late 2024 and the first quarter of 2025, alongside the country’s other state-owned airlines, Saudia Airlines and Riyadh Air (currently in development). However, the new NEOM airline isn’t expected to compete directly with other state-owned carriers and will instead be used to reach a specific transportation goal: bringing travelers directly to the site of NEOM for various purposes, including business and leisure.

The new luxury airline will at first be headquartered in NEOM Bay Airport at first, which opened in 2019 and already offers flights on Saudia Airlines. For example, Saudia currently operates international flights from NEOM Bay Airport to Dubai and London, as well as flights within the country. Eventually, NEOM Airlines will operate out of NEOM International Airport, which is currently being built.

As Chief Executive Klaus Goersch told the website Future Travel Experience, the new airline aims to provide a "world-class travel experience" for passengers, and that all three of Saudi Arabia’s airlines will work together to accomplish various initiatives outlined in "Saudi Vision 2030."

"As NEOM's overall vision is to be the future of living and working, NEOM Airlines is there to support the needs of NEOM and its growing population, visitors and tourism," said Goersch. "Our focus is on serving the destination from global international markets. This means the three airlines complement each other as partners for the joint ambitions of the Kingdom."

Will NEOM Airlines join the SkyTeam Alliance?

Saudia Airlines joined the SkyTeam airline alliance back in 2012, and this paved the way for Saudi travelers and others around the world to earn and redeem miles across the entire network to nearly 1,100 destinations in 184 countries. With this in mind, many are already wondering if NEOM Airlines will also join the SkyTeam alliance, and what future alliance memberships might look like for the upcoming Riyadh Air.

No information has been leaked regarding future alliance leanings quite yet, if there will be any at all. This makes sense, however, when you consider that NEOM Airlines won’t be in operation until 2024, and thus details like available routes and itineraries are still in the works.

That said, it's not unreasonable to believe that all of Saudi Arabia's state-owned airlines will eventually become part of the SkyTeam alliance, allowing them to move the country's anticipated influx of business and leisure travelers from place to place. Ultimately, this means travelers could one day book flights on NEOM Airlines with miles earned with a co-branded Delta credit card, or by transferring American Express Membership Rewards or Chase Ultimate Rewards® to the Air France/Flying Blue program. As we noted, though, there's no news yet on whether NEOM Airlines will join an airline alliance, much less which one.

The bottom line

Saudi Arabia's ambitions to become a major tourist destination don’t appear to be ceasing, so the fact that another airline is on the agenda shouldn't come as a big surprise. After all, the country has expressed its aim to attract up to 100 million tourists to destinations within its borders by 2030, per the bold initiatives outlined in the Saudi Vision 2030 blueprint.

Adventurous travelers who want to visit Saudi Arabia one day will soon have another way to get to the expansive NEOM project, and potentially even use airline miles to make it happen. In the meantime, a range of airlines fly to and from Saudi Arabia already, including Saudia, Emirates, American Airlines and others.