Saudi Arabian Airlines (SAUDIA) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with German based aerospace company, Lilium, to buy 100 electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircrafts.
With zero operating emissions, the Lilium Jets will enable sustainable and time-saving travel allowing the national flag-carrier to play its part in the country’s sustainable air mobility development strategy, the company informed.
This is one the several efforts being put in by the airline to improve its environmental performance and promote sustainable flying. In recent times, SAUDIA has been investing in a variety of sustainability projects and new environmentally friendly initiatives that aims at minimising emissions and promoting the future of sustainable flying.
The state-owned carrier is examining offers from leasing companies, and the contract duration for the leased planes, all Airbus 321 neo aircraft, will be between eight and 10 years, Chairman Ali Aldokhan said. The plan to lease eight planes is in addition to Kuwait Airways’ multi-billion dollar deal with Airbus in 2022 to buy 31 planes, 18 of which it has already received.
“At SAUDIA, we are continually striving to reduce our environmental impact and to promote sustainable travel, we have implemented a variety of environment-friendly initiatives over the years,” said Captain Ibrahim Koshy, CEO, SAUDIA. “We have invested in buying fuel-efficient aircrafts such as Boeing 787 Dreamliners, Electrical Vertical Take-off and Landing jets with Lilium, as well as the order of CFM International LEAP-1A engines to power our new fleet of Airbus A321neo,” he shared.
He was referring to a recent announcement by SAUDIA to expand its fleet with the new A321neo aircraft. Launched under a new slogan ‘A neo-way of living’, the airline is set to add over 20 new aircraft to the fleet by 2026.
The main reason behind the purchase of the aircraft is its ability to run on much less fuel, the airline shared. The A320 family of aircraft have saved 20 million tons of Co2 since the A320neo came into service globally in 2016.
Earlier, SAUDIA became the first in the world to implement Green Points, a programme that rewards passengers for helping to protect the environment. According to the airline, the guests can now reduce food wastage and landfill contributions by pre-selecting their meals during online check-in.
This, it said, will also reduce the weight of stock on board and save fuel. The programme also offers the guests the option to travel with less luggage, which is incentivised by the allocation of Green Points, which can later be exchanged for benefits.
