RIYADH, 26 June 2007 — The National Air Services (NAS) has allocated SR15.5 billion for the purchase of 98 new aircraft in the next five years, NAS Chairman Ayed Al-Jeaid said in a press conference at the company’s headquarters here yesterday.
He said arrangements for the acquisitions were made with different airlines such as Airbus, Boeing, Gulfstream, Dassault and Raytheon.
“Following the signing of a number of purchase agreements, NAS will increase its fleet size to include 142 over the next five years, thus becoming one of the most significant companies operating in the commercial and private aviation sectors in the Middle East,” Al-Jeaid said.
NAS, the largest and fastest growing independent provider of aviation services in the Middle East which currently operates 44 aircraft, is the region’s sole provider of both commercial and private aviation services through its four distinct strategic business units, offering its customers innovative and total solutions to meet their various aviation needs.
The company is also the Middle East representative of NetJets, offering fractional ownership and leasing options, and has been providing this service for the last six years along with full portfolio of aircraft management services solutions.
To complement its package of products, NAS also offers two commercial services.
These include Al-Khayala Airlines, a scheduled all-business class service between Riyadh and Jeddah as well as regional flights to Dubai, and the recently launched NASair, which is the Kingdom’s first domestic budget carrier.
Al-Jeaid said in the first half of 2007, NAS finalized four of the biggest deals — in terms of quantity and quality — made by the private sector in the history of aviation markets in the Middle East.
“The latest of these deals was announced during the Paris Airshow at Le Bourget where NAS signed agreements with Airbus for the purchase of 38 Airbus 320 aircraft valued above SR9 billion, and with Dassault Falcon to buy 20 of its new large cabin business jet, the Falcon 2000LX, for over SR1.9 billion,” he said.
He added that last month, NAS also announced a similar deal with Gulfstream Aerospace Company to buy 20 long-range G450 business jet at a cost of SR2.6 billion, only four months after the company purchased 20 new Hawker 750 aircraft from Raytheon at a cost of SR1 billion.
“NAS will finance the aggressive acquisition plans via local, regional and international financial institutions. It will also rely on creative financial instruments that will provide attractive investment venues to capital market investors,” Al-Jeaid said. He said that the aircraft selection is the result of extensive studies and vigorous negotiations with the manufacturers aimed at building long-term partnerships.
“We have taken into account the diverse needs of the company’s services and its aircraft requirements in terms of frame size, load capacity, performance levels and operational cost,” he said.
He added that the recent announcement with Airbus constitutes the core fleet of NASair and allows the new budget carrier to operate new domestic and international destinations in the near future.
Last December, the Saudi General Authority of Civil Aviation granted NAS the first license to operate scheduled domestic flights from Riyadh and in February, launched the Kingdom’s first budget carrier under the commercial name “NASair.”
The addition of 60 aircraft from three different categories is expected to enhance the company’s aircraft fractional ownership and lease program (NetJets) and cater to the needs of the largest segment of the private aviation sector throughout the region.
Al-Jeaid said that strengthening NAS’ fleet and providing clients with innovative aviation solutions through professional teams play pivotal roles in expanding the company’s clientele base across many segments of traveling community in the Kingdom and in the Middle East.
“Now, more than ever, our clients are interested in alternatives to secure outstanding service with better return. NAS also seeks to achieve a rewarding return on investment for the company’s shareholders,” he said.
NAS is expecting to sell a portion of the company via IPO next year to share its success with Saudi investors in the capital market.
Al-Jeaid added that the company is continuously working on recruiting high caliber professionals from the national and international markets as part of its ongoing employment strategy for the needs of the company’s strategic business units.
He pointed out that sound economic indicators, heightened corporate travels, the need for efficient travel services and the liberalization of many of the region’s aviation sector “leads to a travel market boom and the creation of a healthy environment with many attractive opportunities.”
“Our fleet expansion plans are due to the high demand for private and commercial aviation services which the region is likely to witness in the next 10 years,” he said.
According to recent statistics, Middle East is witnessing phenomenal growth rates compared to other international markets with 8 percent and 7 percent annual growth rates for the private and commercial aviation, respectively.
