Riyadh Air will receive its first Boeing 787-9 aircraft from the US plane maker later than scheduled this year, delaying the start-up airline's debut.
The carrier will get its first wide-body jet in the third quarter of this year, with the first flight to launch shortly afterwards, it said on Thursday. The airline had originally planned to start operations in the middle of the year.
“The arrival of the first B787-9 will allow operations to commence as soon as possible, and we remain in close contact with our colleagues at Boeing with the aim to receive delivery of a number of aircraft later this year,” an airline official said.
“Major parts of the first aircraft are already prepared for final assembly and given well-known global supply chain challenges, we expect delivery to start in Q3, facilitating the start of operations soon after.”
The airline expects to receive its air operator certificate from the regulator in “the coming weeks”, while more than 60 cabin crew and pilots have already been hired. Riyadh Air will reveal its aircraft cabins and product offerings in the “coming months”, it said.
Riyadh Air has previously said that it has received commitments from Boeing for timely delivery of its first aircraft, as the start-up does not have the option to operate older or leased planes.
However, the US plane maker has been struggling to deliver on time due to strikes and production problems. About 33,000 workers at two major plants went on a seven-week strike in September that crippled most of Boeing's production.
“We continue to work closely with Riyadh Air on their delivery schedule and look forward to supporting Riyadh’s inaugural operations,” a Boeing representative told The National.
Over the past few years, a series of crises have gripped Boeing, which is now working towards rebuilding trust with passengers and regulators, nearly a year after a door panel blew off during an Alaska Airlines 737 Max 9 flight. That sparked a leadership shake-up and deliveries plunged 35 per cent in 2024 as production was restricted to resolve quality issues.
“We remain focused on executing our production rate plans to meet strong demand for the 787 Dreamliner family, and we continue to work closely with all our 787 customers on the specific timing of their deliveries,” the Boeing representative said.
In the months following the mid-air panel blowout incident, Boeing worked to tackle defective parts from suppliers.
Airlines worldwide have been facing faltering supply chains and shortages of parts including seats, cabins and galleys, worsening production and delivery delays.
The International Air Transport Association (Iata) forecast last month that severe supply chain issues would continue to affect airlines into 2025, raising costs and limiting growth.
Willie Walsh, Iata's director general, said earlier this month that airlines were missing out on opportunities to better serve customers and modernise their products owing to aircraft not being delivered on time.
“The 2025 New Year’s resolution for the aerospace manufacturing sector must be finding a fast and durable solution for their supply chain issues,” he said.
Cryopreservation: A timeline
- Keyhole surgery under general anaesthetic
- Ovarian tissue surgically removed
- Tissue processed in a high-tech facility
- Tissue re-implanted at a time of the patient’s choosing
- Full hormone production regained within 4-6 months
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Children who witnessed blood bath want to help others
Aged just 11, Khulood Al Najjar’s daughter, Nora, bravely attempted to fight off Philip Spence. Her finger was injured when she put her hand in between the claw hammer and her mother’s head.
As a vital witness, she was forced to relive the ordeal by police who needed to identify the attacker and ensure he was found guilty.
Now aged 16, Nora has decided she wants to dedicate her career to helping other victims of crime.
“It was very horrible for her. She saw her mum, dying, just next to her eyes. But now she just wants to go forward,” said Khulood, speaking about how her eldest daughter was dealing with the trauma of the incident five years ago. “She is saying, 'mama, I want to be a lawyer, I want to help people achieve justice'.”
Khulood’s youngest daughter, Fatima, was seven at the time of the attack and attempted to help paramedics responding to the incident.
“Now she wants to be a maxillofacial doctor,” Khulood said. “She said to me ‘it is because a maxillofacial doctor returned your face, mama’. Now she wants to help people see themselves in the mirror again.”
Khulood’s son, Saeed, was nine in 2014 and slept through the attack. While he did not witness the trauma, this made it more difficult for him to understand what had happened. He has ambitions to become an engineer.
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
German intelligence warnings
- 2002: "Hezbollah supporters feared becoming a target of security services because of the effects of [9/11] ... discussions on Hezbollah policy moved from mosques into smaller circles in private homes." Supporters in Germany: 800
- 2013: "Financial and logistical support from Germany for Hezbollah in Lebanon supports the armed struggle against Israel ... Hezbollah supporters in Germany hold back from actions that would gain publicity." Supporters in Germany: 950
- 2023: "It must be reckoned with that Hezbollah will continue to plan terrorist actions outside the Middle East against Israel or Israeli interests." Supporters in Germany: 1,250
Source: Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution
SHAITTAN
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