Flyadeal CEO: Expect Supply Chain Pain For Next Three To Five Years

DUBAI—The CEO of Saudi Arabian low-cost carrier Flyadeal predicts there will be industry supply chain challenges for the next 3-5 years, particularly in the areas of engine availability and the supply of buyer furnished equipment for aircraft.

“I think anyone who says next year will be better hasn’t got their head screwed on,” said Steven Greenway, CEO of Flyadeal, speaking at Aviation Week Network’s MRO Middle East here on Feb. 10. “We’re suffering delays, albeit less so on the airframe side and more on the engines, which is problematic for all the reasons everyone talks about, and [on] things that go into the aircraft such as seats, galleys and that type of stuff.” 

However, Greenway noted that Flyadeal has lessened the extent of the supply chain challenges for its buyer furnished equipment items found onboard its aircraft, such as seats and galleys. “We are impacted a bit less than other airlines because a lot of our stuff isn’t customized and is instead off the shelf,” he said. 

Flyadeal operates an all-Airbus fleet comprised of 37 A320ceo and neo aircraft and it is aiming to grow to 102 aircraft in 4-5 years. “This fleet growth is being supported by the domestic market in the Kingdom which is growing about 15% year on year,” Greenway said.

The airline is planning to enter the widebody aircraft market by 2027 through a yet-to-be announced widebody order along with plans to add more single-aisle Airbus aircraft. Greenway estimates there will be around one aircraft delivery a month for the next 5-6 yr. “We spent the last year investing—there’s going to be a huge strain on the business,” he said.

Supporting fleet growth is aided by its maintenance requirements, with Greenway noting that Flyadeal partners with companies such as Jeddah-based Saudia Technic and Jordian maintenance provider Joramco. “Like any low-cost carrier, we do have a nice ecosystem of outsource partners that we work with closely,” he said. Greenway added that the airline’s maintenance strategy is driven by the principles of quality, reliability, on-time services and cost. 

Greenway, who took the helm at Flyadeal at the beginning of 2024, said the airline experienced growing pains after a period of sustained growth following its operational launch seven years ago.

“We had to take a breather last year as there were a lot of things we weren’t doing correctly that we needed to fix,” he said. “We looked at everything we were doing in the organization and tried to tweak what is considered the boring stuff—making sure we have people, processes and systems that work.” He said the airline is now seeing benefits of its reset in both commercial and operational performance.

In terms of future technology adoption and the current hot topic of artificial intelligence (AI), Greenway acknowledged its impact but said it will not influence the carrier’s future decisions. “What we’re doing is trying to work out how we can integrate AI as a decision support tool,” he said.