From information being published by Routes Online, Saudi Arabia's national flag carrier Saudia may have planned its first 787-10 flights.
Saudia has filed preliminary service for its first Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner flights with the travel agents global distribution system schedule listing. The initial filing currently displays the 10 aircraft operating on the Kuala Lumpur (KUL)– Jeddah (JED) route, effective from the 29th of March 2020
The configuration of Saudia 787-10 Dreamliner is C24Y333, and the current schedule looks as follows:
- SV834 JED0205 – 1545KUL 787 D
- SV842 JED0755 – 2135KUL 789 x236
- SV840 JED1305 – 0245+1KUL 787 D
- SV841 KUL0425 – 0745JED 787 D
- SV835 KUL1720 – 2040JED 787 D
- SV843 KUL2315 – 0235+1JED 789 x236
SV834/835 is not yet available for reservation.
Saudia let it be known earlier this year they would be operating 787-10s
Saudia signaled that it was looking to start operating the Boeing 787-10s early this year when Saudia's chief executive Jaan Albrecht spoke about the 787-10 with Flight Global at an event in Munich.
The Saudi chief suggested that the Middle Eastern carrier would start integrating the 787-10 into the fleet, starting with three in 2019 and a further seven in 2020.
Meanwhile, Seattle planemaker Boeing has disclosed nothing about the Saudia 787-10 order saying only that the Jeddah based airline placed an order for eight 787-9s in 2010. These planes were delivered to Saudia between January 2016 and August of 2017.
Boeing does, however, have an order from an undisclosed customer for their next Dreamliner variant. While they will not say who it is, Albrecht told Flight Global that they were waiting for eight 787-10s.
When asked about Saudia’s extensive alterations to its fleet Albrecht said:
“We’ve integrated 82 new aircraft in the last three years.”
Saudia wants to have all Saudi pilots
Before Jaan Albrecht joined Saudia, the Arab News claims that Director-General of the Airline Nasser Al-Jasser wanted to have a fleet of 200 aircraft all flown by Saudi pilots.
When speaking about the ambitious project Al-Jasser said,
“Saudia is training about 3,000 Saudi pilots. They have been sent abroad for the best education and to fulfill the future demand for pilots and co-pilots.”
What makes the 787-10 different from the 787-9?
While both aircraft come from the Dreamliner family of jets and feature a state of the art air filtration system and mood lighting, there are several key differences.
At 18 feet longer than the 787-9, the 787-10 can carry more passengers and cargo.
When flying a distance of 6,430 nautical miles, the 787-10 uses 20% less fuel than the 787-9, a considerable saving on long flights. This is a big selling point for Boeing that adds to its appeal as a long-haul airliner.
According to United Airlines who are the first American carrier to get the 787-10, the ride is smoother thanks to technology designed to offset turbulence. The 787-10 also features big 19 inch windows, the biggest in the marketplace on commercial jets.
If you have flown on a 787-10 we would love to hear your comments on how it compares to other aircraft.