Riyadh Air has secured daily flight slots to London Heathrow, revealed in a filing by Airport Coordination Limited (ACL) — the appointed coordinator for London Heathrow airport.
The filing reveals that Riyadh Air aims to commence the seasonal route on October 26, 2025. The routes were acquired from a pool of remedy slots from British Airways.
The filing noted that the aircraft used for the routes will be its 787-9, featuring 288 seats. The airline is still awaiting its 787-9 deliveries. The airline said its 787-9 would have a 290 seat configuration. However, the airline's technical spare 787-9 acquired from Oman Air has a seat configuration consisting of 288 seats.
A spokesperson for Riyadh Air neither confirmed nor denied the filing to Airline Economics. They said: “Riyadh Air is currently finalising its network for the start of operations later in 2025 and will be announcing initial routes in the near future.”
The route expects Riyadh Air to arrive in Heathrow at 7:30am local time and to depart Heathrow at 9:30am local time. Additionally, the filing stated that the airline will operate the route from terminal four.
The airline had originally planned to commence operations in the third quarter before pushing back the date as a result of ongoing delivery delays of its 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft.
The airline ordered 39 firm of the aircraft with options for 33 more. Additionally, Riyadh Air ordered 25 firm A350-1000s at the Paris Air Show, along with options for 20 more. In addition, the company ordered up to 60 A321neo narrowbodies in October last year.
Riyadh Air had obtained its air operators certificate (AOC) in April 2025.