Attended the Riyadh Air pilot roadshow at the Crowne Plaza Gatwick on the 3rd. A second session was held in Manchester on the 5th. Three weeks later, with notes organised, here’s the account. Both sessions are understood to have been consistent.
The registration page listed the event as 10 AM to 5 PM (seven hours). The reminder email that followed upgraded that to 9 AM to 6 PM (nine hours). The commute to Crawley was arranged, the diary cleared, and attendance made accordingly.
The session was done around noon. Seven hours requested, then nine… under two delivered. If that ratio feels familiar by the end of this post, it isn’t a coincidence.
Two presenters: the Senior Manager for Crew Acquisition and a line First Officer. They showed up — the unambiguous positive of the morning. Warm, informal (except for the pilot uniform and hat always worn indoors), straightforward. Did their best.
That being said — when an airline asks experienced crews to relocate their lives to Saudi Arabia, sending a management pilot alongside the recruiter is not a luxury… it sets the tone. One may think it’s all hands on deck, but it’s not quite the signal you’d want to send — and it doesn’t sit comfortably with an ambitious project backed by very deep pockets.
The operation as of the 3rd: one daily flight to Heathrow on an Oman Air 787, with three Captains only — no First Officers on board. Own fleet: zero. The leased aircraft cabin configuration does not match what Riyadh is aiming for. Pilots on strength: approximately 120. Target for 2026: nearly 250.
A321LR programme — cabin config not decided, routes not decided, pay rates not published. “We haven’t fully decided” was the theme of the morning. It settled in rather like the weather.
Internal promotions not yet decided; however, the likely minimum is 2,000 hours on each seat/fleet before transition: A321LR/B787 FO → A321LR CA → A350/B787 CA. As the company also hires externally, it may mean a long wait for a widebody upgrade. Great if you join on the B787 Captain slot. Otherwise, less so.
The compensation on the Normal Roster is genuinely strong. The breakdown below covers Captain, First Officer, and conditions — from official slides shown in the room.
NOTE: Currency conversions approximate. Rates: 1 SAR = GBP 0.199 / EUR 0.245 / USD 0.267 (April 2026). Verify before making financial decisions.
--- COMMUTING CONTRACT (both rosters): NONE. Riyadh is your base. ---
===== CAPTAIN — MONTHLY =====
Basic salary
- Normal Roster: SAR 48,700 (GBP 9,720 / EUR 11,900 / USD 13,000)
- Lifestyle Roster: SAR 40,000 (GBP 7,980 / EUR 9,800 / USD 10,667)
Flight pay guarantee
- Normal Roster: 75 hrs = SAR 18,750 (GBP 3,740 / EUR 4,590 / USD 5,000)
- Lifestyle Roster: 60 hrs = SAR 15,000 (GBP 2,992 / EUR 3,675 / USD 4,000)
Housing allowance
- Normal Roster: SAR 20,000 (GBP 3,990 / EUR 4,900 / USD 5,330)
- Lifestyle Roster: SAR 8,400 (GBP 1,676 / EUR 2,058 / USD 2,240)
Transport allowance
- Normal Roster: SAR 4,870 (GBP 971 / EUR 1,193 / USD 1,299)
- Lifestyle Roster: SAR 2,000 (GBP 399 / EUR 490 / USD 533)
All-in monthly (estimated)
- Normal Roster: GBP 18,400 / EUR 22,600 / USD 23,200
- Lifestyle Roster: GBP 13,047 / EUR 16,020 / USD 16,440
Annual difference (Normal vs Lifestyle):
-GBP 64,500 / -EUR 79,200 / -USD 81,200
===== FIRST OFFICER — MONTHLY =====
Basic salary
- Normal Roster: SAR 33,556 (GBP 6,690 / EUR 8,220 / USD 8,950)
- Lifestyle Roster: SAR 28,000 (GBP 5,585 / EUR 6,860 / USD 7,467)
Flight pay guarantee
- Normal Roster: 75 hrs = SAR 11,250 (GBP 2,243 / EUR 2,756 / USD 3,000)
- Lifestyle Roster: 60 hrs = SAR 9,000 (GBP 1,795 / EUR 2,205 / USD 2,400)
Housing allowance
- Normal Roster: SAR 16,000 (GBP 3,192 / EUR 3,920 / USD 4,267)
- Lifestyle Roster: SAR 7,000 (GBP 1,396 / EUR 1,715 / USD 1,867)
Transport allowance
- Normal Roster: SAR 3,355 (GBP 669 / EUR 822 / USD 895)
- Lifestyle Roster: SAR 1,400 (GBP 279 / EUR 343 / USD 373)
All-in monthly (estimated)
- Normal Roster: GBP 13,600 / EUR 16,700 / USD 17,100
- Lifestyle Roster: GBP 9,800 / EUR 12,030 / USD 12,360
Annual difference (Normal vs Lifestyle):
-GBP 45,600 / -EUR 56,000 / -USD 56,900
===== CONDITIONS — BOTH RANKS =====
Annual leave
- Normal Roster: 42 days
- Lifestyle Roster: NIL
Roster pattern
- Normal Roster: Standard reserve
- Lifestyle Roster: NOT 14 ON / 14 OFF. Fixed / 14 days off per cycle
(17 on / 14 off in 31-day months = ~7 months of the year)
Annual days off (approx., incl. annual leave + ~9 public holidays)
- Normal Roster: ~103 days off / ~262 days on
- Lifestyle Roster: ~177 days off / ~188 days on
- Public holiday entitlement on Lifestyle Roster not confirmed in writing
Availability
- Normal Roster: All pilots, from day one
- Lifestyle Roster: 25% of pilots only, by join-date seniority
Available after training completion + 100 hrs logged
Staff travel (MyIDTravel)
- Included: AF/KL group, LH group, and others
- Excluded: Emirates (EK) and Etihad (EY)
Benefits — identical on both rosters
- Education: SAR 60,000/child/year, up to 4 children, ages 4–22, any school globally
- Medical: BUPA VVIP — full family, vision, dental, global emergency
- Tickets: 2× J class (CA) / 2× Premium Eco (FO) + spouse + 4 children
All figures tax-free. Salary pegged to USD — no exchange rate protection.
Annual increases: Captain +3% / First Officer +2% per year.
Flight pay guarantee runs to December 2026 only. Fleet addition to follow.
Two items above deserve specific mention. BUPA VVIP medical for the entire family — vision, dental, global emergency, all dependants — is the real thing, not a token plan. And SAR 60,000 per child per year for up to four children at any school in the world to age 22 is exceptional by any standard. For families with children in education, those two lines change the calculation considerably.
On the Lifestyle Roster — it is not a commuting roster and the two should not be confused. A commuting roster implies the airline accepts you may live elsewhere. This one doesn’t. Riyadh is your base. Travel home on days off is your cost and your problem (and worth keeping an eye on from a tax perspective).
For reference:
Normal Roster yields ~103 days off per year.
Lifestyle Roster yields ~177 — but at a cost of GBP 64,500 / EUR 79,200 / USD 81,200 annually for a Captain, with public holiday entitlement not confirmed in writing. Roughly GBP 870 per extra day off — before that point is clarified.
Bond: USD 36,000 / GBP 28,600 / EUR 33,200 clawed back over 36 months on early exit.
The flight pay guarantee protecting income while the network is thin runs only to December 2026 — beyond that, nothing committed.
Salary pegged to USD with no exchange rate protection — relevant if your life costs sit in GBP or EUR.
What’s presented as a golden handshake is worth reading carefully as golden handcuffs. Airlines should not need to bond their pilots — they retain them by making them want to stay. If arriving already type-rated, the argument weakens further.
The contract also precedes the medical at their own centre — worth obtaining written clarity on terms should anything arise post-signature. Some have chosen to complete a medical beforehand, for obvious reasons.
Technical panel is serious — ex-EK, QR, Cathay TRI/TRE level. They will know quickly whether you’re operating on knowledge or confidence. One point worth noting: arrive with a full ATPL and command experience but accept an FO seat, and you will still sit their ~1,200-question ATPL programme. The test follows the seat, not the licence.
A GACA oral follows post-offer — think FAA-style type ride and certificate oral. Not trivial, and not something to approach casually.
What didn’t come up: 47°C inland summers, the single licensed alcohol retailer and its monopoly pricing, the actual dress code for female staff — addressed optimistically in the room, but ultimately governed by Saudi law. Saudization also absent — no expatriate FO upgrades at Saudia since the 1990s, expat FOs first removed during COVID. Anyone considering an FO seat with upgrade expectations should read that history before the contract, not after. Saudia is, of course, a different airline. Perhaps this one will take a different path.
On PIF backing as the cited safety net: the fund is real and the airline isn’t going anywhere. It also backs NEOM, Red Sea Global, Qiddiya, Diriyah, and an expanding list of Vision 2030 projects, each with their own appetite for capital. Deep pockets, yes — and a rather long queue at the counter. Best to go in knowing what the next 18 months actually look like operationally, not just what the brochure suggests.
On seniority: an early number at a 182-aircraft startup sounds compelling, and in principle it should be. At a US major or a number of European legacies, seniority is contractually protected, union-enforced, and permanent — governing vacation bidding, days off, roster, aircraft choice, and career trajectory for the duration of a career. Here it currently governs your position on a Lifestyle Roster waitlist available to 25% of pilots at reduced pay with no leave. It does not grant perpetual privileges to roster, vacation, or days off — there is no contractual architecture behind it. It would be wise to understand which version you are accumulating before treating it as the deciding factor.
Everything here is offered in good faith. The airline that exists today and the one described in the slides are two rather different organisations — and only one of them is signing your contract.
To those proceeding: best of luck, genuinely. To those waiting for more favourable conditions: also a perfectly sound decision. There is no shortage of options at present, and patience costs nothing if you are already employed.
My two cents: this may yet become a very good place to work — but it has not quite left the blocks on the right foot.