Saudi Arabia Open for Business Aviation

Saudi Arabia Open for Business Aviation – With Saudi Arabia’s ambitious Vision 2030 driving economic diversification, private aviation is getting the opportunity to soar to new heights in the Kingdom. At MEBAA Show 2024, I was delighted to sit down with two exceptional local industry thought leaders; Yosef Hafiz, Vice President of Sales and Marketing at NASJET and Mohammed AlBokhari, CEO of Aviation Horizons to discuss the exciting growth of the Saudi business aviation market. During our deep dive into the market, we explored the latest developments, the factors fueling the expansion, and what the future holds for this booming sector.

From cutting-edge infrastructure to strategic investments, we considered the key factors and trends shaping Saudi Arabia’s aviation landscape. Mohammed pointed to the nationwide development and economic stimulation and that general aviation will be feeding mega projects, new developments of infrastructure, and facilitating big corporates doing business in the country. Yosef added that with many big corporates moving their regional headquarters to Riyadh, the influx of high-net-worth individuals, as well as newcomers to the market, is resulting in massive demand for more business jets.

And what about the infrastructure required to support major growth in the sector? Both of my guests spoke about how the Saudi government supporting the expansion of private aviation as well as the infrastructural developments being made to accommodate this growth. GACA is amending rules to make it easier to do business in the country marking some major advancements in Saudi regulations. Indeed, the government has established a department to focus purely on the development of the GA sector. It’s job: to mitigate challenges faced by foreign investors and local operators. They have even been reaching out to regional stakeholders for insight. I knew this prior to our discussion having been already being approached and recently having a conversation with them myself.

All significant change firstly requires a change in mentality, and we agreed that this will be the major challenge.  However, from my guests’ insights, it seems the relevant Saudi authorities are responsive and open to taking new steps. The country is certainly moving in the right direction. I’m looking forward to seeing how this year plays out for BizAv in Saudi!

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