Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is pushing ahead with one of the most aggressive aviation expansions of the decade, even as some of his most famous mega-projects like THE LINE and TROJENA are quietly being scaled back. While parts of NEOM’s original vision are being reshaped, the Crown Prince is more energized than ever about aviation and is launching three new airlines. These additions will sit alongside Saudia, Riyadh Air, flynas, and flyadeal. If all three debut as planned, Saudi Arabia will have at least seven active carriers built to feed the tourism engine of Vision 2030.

At the core of this is King Salman International Airport in Riyadh, which is targeting 120 million passengers by 2030 and as many as 185 million by 2050. The aim is to position Saudi Arabia next to Dubai and Doha as one of the leading aviation hubs in the world. Fahd Hamidaddin, CEO of the Saudi Tourism Authority, summed it up at the Cityscape Global conference when he said that a successful national airline builds a destination and noted that two airlines are already established, with three more coming.

The first of the new carriers is the Dammam low-cost airline that will serve the Eastern Province. Based at King Fahd International Airport, it is a joint venture led by Air Arabia with Saudi partners Nesma Group and KUN Investment Holding. It won the General Authority of Civil Aviation tender in July 2025. By 2030, it plans to operate around 45 narrow-body aircraft, almost certainly from the A320 and A321 family. It will fly 24 domestic routes and 57 international routes and aims to carry about 10 million passengers a year.

Read the full story at Luxury Launches