Delta Air Lines has shed some light on the airline’s intended route launch to Saudi Arabia, with the route being revealed as Atlanta-Riyadh. According to the carrier’s CEO, Ed Bastian, flights are slated to begin in the fall of 2026.
The route follows Delta’s partnership with Riyadh Air. With Riyadh Air commencing commercial operations shortly, it will be interesting to see how this partnership between the two carriers develops in the coming years.
Atlanta To Riyadh, Delta’s First Flight To Saudi Arabia
Credit: Vincenzo Pace
In July 2024, American carrier Delta Air Lines formed a partnership with Saudi Arabia’s new national airline, Riyadh Air, in the hopes of forming a synergistic partnership between the two carriers, once the latter commenced commercial service, which is due to begin shortly.
As part of the partnership announcement, Delta announced it would launch flights to Saudi Arabia in the future, and now, as per reports from One Mile At A Time, the airline’s CEO, Ed Bastian, has announced that the carrier is planning to launch services in the fall of 2026, connecting Delta’s home, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) to Riyadh King Khalid International Airport (RUH).
Reports indicate that Delta will be operating this long-haul service utilizing the carrier’s flagship widebody, the Airbus A350-900. With Saudi Arabia offering subsidies at RUH to boost connectivity, it also considerably offsets Delta’s financial burden of launching a new route. The following statement was made by the CEO at the time of forming the partnership,
“This partnership with Riyadh Air will further Delta’s mission of connecting the world and open an array of new choices, benefits and destinations for our customers traveling to and from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.”
Providing Connectivity Beyond The Middle East
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Delta’s plans to fly to Riyadh can be attributed to geography and perhaps even competition. With Riyadh Air planning significant fleet and network expansion in the coming years, across the regions of the Middle East, Africa, and Asia, competing with the likes of hub-and-spoke operators, such as Emirates, a partnership with Riyadh Air would allow Delta to provide connectivity to its own passengers across these markets via Riyadh.
A one-stop access to these markets is something which Delta has lacked, while in the past five years, the carrier’s US competitors, United Airlines and American Airlines, have achieved this by forming partnerships with Emirates and Qatar Airways, respectively, and subsequently launching flights from the US to Dubai and Doha.
While Delta previously operated flights to Dubai in 2016, the carrier had no partner in the region who could effectively provide onward connectivity for Delta passengers. That, paired with the disagreements at the time between the US Big Three carriers and the Middle East Big Three, resulted in Delta (and United) exiting Dubai.
However, now with Riyadh Air being a partner in the Middle East, who also have partnerships with Delta’s North Atlantic Joint-Venture partners, Air France-KLM, and Virgin Atlantic, Delta finds itself in a strong position to launch services to Riyadh where it can benefit not only from onward connectivity, but various synergies and mutual advantages when it comes to ground operations and customer-support.
A350-900: The Perfect Aircraft
Credit: Vincenzo Pace
As mentioned above, Delta will be operating its upcoming flights to Riyadh using its fleet of Airbus A350-900s, which, considering Delta’s fleet of widebody aircraft, would be the most suitable aircraft for such a route purely based on the operational range the A350 offers.
As per Delta’s fleet specifications, the carrier has its fleet of A350s fitted with three cabin configurations as seen below:
Configuration
Delta One
Delta Premium Select
Delta Comfort
Delta Main
Total Capacity
Aircraft Range
359
32
48
36
190
306
7,275 miles
35H
40
40
36
159
275
8,000 miles
35L
30
N/A
63
246
339
8,160 miles
Considering the ATL-RUH journey has a distance of 7,283 miles, and that the competition faced in the Middle Eastern market is premium-heavy, it can be concluded that Delta will be serving this route with its A350s that have the 35H cabin configuration, ensuring sufficient premium capacity and the operational range required are met.
