Gulf Aviation Jobs 2026: Riyadh Air and Saudi Arabia's New Carriers Are Hiring Pilots, Crew and Engineers — Salaries and How to Apply

Last updated: October 2026

Saudi Arabia is running the largest aviation hiring campaign the Gulf has seen in a decade, and Riyadh Air sits at the centre of it. The airline, which operated its first commercial flight on 26 October 2025, had between roughly 40 and 80+ openings live across its portals in early October 2026, covering pilots, cabin crew, licensed engineers and corporate staff. Reported pay runs from SAR 60,000 a month (about USD 16,000) for A321neo First Officers up to SAR 120,000 (about USD 32,000) for 787-9 Captains, and SAR 10,000–13,000 (about USD 2,700–3,500) for cabin crew — none of it subject to personal income tax. Everything is filed through three official channels: careers-riyadhair.icims.com, pilots-riyadhair.icims.com and the talentcommunity.riyadhair.com talent community.

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Who These Jobs Are For

This guide is written for licensed aviation professionals and serious applicants worldwide — not for one national market. That means jet-experienced pilots holding or close to an ATPL, cabin crew candidates from the UK, India, the Philippines, Pakistan, Nigeria, Egypt and across Europe, and B1/B2 licensed maintenance engineers looking at the Gulf as their next contract.

Riyadh Air recruits internationally and says so structurally: its cabin crew assessment days in 2026 span 14 cities from Sydney and Manchester to Johannesburg and Kuala Lumpur. Scale-wise, Saudi job aggregators listed 41, 62, 81 and 82–83 Riyadh Air vacancies across four separate trackers in August–October 2026 — treat that as a rolling "60–80+" rather than a fixed count. Bing's live jobs panel on 2 October 2026 showed 265 aviation vacancies in Riyadh, 14 in Dammam and 13 in Jeddah, including 29 separate cabin crew adverts.

Riyadh Air is not the only door. Saudia Group, its maintenance arm Saudia Technic, the air navigation provider SANS, low-cost carrier flyadeal and ground-and-maintenance firm GDC Middle East all ran live careers pages on the same date. If your target is the UAE or Bahrain, Gulf Air's careers portal and a recent Air Arabia drive of roughly 110 vacancies (with advertised pay reaching AED 400,000, per Al Khaleej) keep the wider Gulf market active too.

Why Riyadh Air Is the Biggest Story in Gulf Aviation Hiring

Riyadh Air was founded on 12 March 2023 by Crown Prince announcement, is owned by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, and is chaired by PIF Governor Yasser Al-Rumayyan. Its CEO is Tony Douglas, the former Etihad Aviation Group chief executive — a signal that the airline was built by people who know exactly how Gulf carriers recruit expatriate flight crew.

Source: Riyadh Air official YouTube channel

The fleet math is what drives the hiring. Riyadh Air operates 8 aircraft with 151 more on order: 40 Boeing 787-9s plus 5 options, 20 787-10s, 60 Airbus A321neos and 31 A350-1000s plus 19 options. Every one of those airframes needs flight crew, cabin crew and line engineers, and the airline currently serves 15 destinations with a stated target of 100 by 2030.

Source: Wikimedia Commons

The macro picture is even bigger. The airline is projected to create more than 200,000 direct and indirect jobs and add USD 20 billion to Saudi non-oil GDP, per its Wikipedia-sourced company profile. Its future hub, King Salman International Airport — announced in December 2022 — is designed for six runways, 100 million passengers a year by 2030 and 185 million by 2050. For job seekers, that translates into a decade-long intake of crews, engineers and ground staff rather than a one-off recruitment burst.

Candidate interest is keeping pace: Riyadh Air's LinkedIn page counts over 871,000 followers, and its official YouTube channel has 1.82 million subscribers.

Pilot Jobs at Riyadh Air: Requirements, Fleet and Pay

Riyadh Air's pilot recruitment is split across its two fleets — the Boeing 787-9 for medium and long haul and the A321neo for regional flying. The requirements below are the published minimums reported by CrewDaily in June 2026, drawn from the airline's own adverts.

First Officer (787-9) minimums:

• 2,000 flight hours on multi-crew jet aircraft
• A valid ATPL
• A current Class 1 medical
• ICAO English level 5 or higher

Captain minimums (787-9 and A321neo):

• 6,000 total flight hours, including 2,000 in command
• Applicants must be under 59 years old at joining

On pay, CrewDaily's June 2026 figures — still the most detailed public breakdown — read as follows. First Officer on the A321neo: SAR 60,000 per month (~USD 16,000). First Officer on the 787-9: SAR 65,000. Captain on the A321neo: SAR 85,000–115,000. Captain on the 787-9: SAR 90,000–120,000 (~USD 24,000–32,000).

One documented 787-9 First Officer package breaks the total down as SAR 57,000 base + SAR 19,500 housing allowance + SAR 4,800 transport + SAR 9,200 flight pay — about USD 24,600 a month all-in. That component structure matters at negotiation stage: the base is only part of the contract.

Source: Wikimedia Commons

For benchmarking, SalaryExpert placed the average Saudi pilot salary at SAR 196,912 a year (roughly USD 52,500) as of 26 August 2026, and SAR 221,007 a year (~USD 58,900) for Riyadh-based pilots specifically. A separate CrewDaily analysis from February 2026 frames the whole Saudi pilot market as SAR 18,000–120,000 per month, tax-free. Expat contract ranges compiled by Mawakeb-Saudia sit inside that band: FO SAR 18,000–30,000, narrowbody Captain SAR 40,000–65,000, widebody Captain SAR 60,000–100,000+.

If you are not yet at those minimums, the licensing path in Saudi Arabia costs real money before it pays: budget SAR 30,000–60,000 for a PPL, SAR 80,000–150,000 for a CPL, SAR 15,000–30,000 for the ATPL, plus a 2–4 month type rating, per Mawakeb-Saudia's career-path estimates. Riyadh Air's pilot openings are for qualified jet pilots; the academy route is a separate, slower entry.

Cabin Crew Jobs at Riyadh Air: Requirements, Pay and the Assessment Trail

Riyadh Air's cabin crew campaign is its highest-volume hiring stream, and the published entry bar — compiled by learnwithkateryna.ae in August 2026 — is the classic Gulf profile:

• Age 21 or over
• Height 160 cm with a reach of 212 cm
• High school certificate as a minimum education
• Fluent English (additional languages help on a 100-destination network)
• One year (strongly preferred) of hospitality or customer-facing service experience

Total pay is reported at SAR 10,000–13,000 per month (~USD 2,700–3,500), structured as roughly a SAR 5,500 basic plus flying pay, with company housing provided — figures attributed to learnwithkateryna.ae and the CabinCrewHQ job board. For comparison, the same source puts Saudia cabin crew at SAR 8,000–14,000. Two structural protections stand out in the 2026 contracts: 75 flying hours per month are guaranteed through the end of 2026, and crew receive a full salary during the 8-week training course, per The Cabin Crew Forum's recruitment guide.

The selection funnel, reconstructed from the same guide and learnwithkateryna's step-by-step, runs: online application, online assessment with a short recorded video interview (about six minutes), an assessment day, a final interview, then medicals and training. Assessment days in 2026 were scheduled in Sydney, Brussels, Sofia, Milan, Dublin, Manchester, Shanghai, Johannesburg, Baku, Athens, Barcelona, Seoul, Jeddah and Kuala Lumpur — a list that tells you plainly which candidate pools the airline is fishing in.

Aircraft Engineer and Maintenance Jobs in Saudi Arabia

Engineers are the least-covered role group in Gulf aviation content, yet some of the most concrete vacancies. Riyadh Air's August 2026 bulk advertisement — 62 roles published on 24 August — explicitly included Technician II, Engineer I, A321 and B1 licence positions, with a base salary of SAR 10,000 per month embedded in the job posting data and applications valid through 10 October 2026. B1 (airframe and engine) and B2 (avionics) holders are the profiles that keep a 151-aircraft order book airworthy.

The wider Saudi maintenance ecosystem is hiring in parallel. Saudia Technic, the MRO arm of Saudia Group, runs its own careers portal; SANS (Saudi Air Navigation Services) recruits licensed engineers and ATCs; flyadeal hires technical crews for its narrowbody operation; and GDC Middle East — the Saudi ground and aircraft maintenance company — surfaced with multiple Riyadh vacancies in Bing's October jobs panel. Industry salary benchmarks covering AME, ATC and MRO roles across Saudia, Riyadh Air and flynas exist on specialist Middle East job boards, but no audited public scale has been published — treat any engineer salary figure you see outside an actual contract as indicative only.

If you hold an EASA or GCAA licence, expect a Saudi licence conversion conversation at offer stage rather than before it.

Saudi Aviation Salary Table 2026: Every Published Number in One Place

The table below collects every verifiable figure we found, with its source. Estimates are labelled as estimates; USD conversions use the SAR 3.75 peg, rounded.

Notice the pattern: Riyadh Air's published pilot packages sit at or above the top of the Saudi market band, which is exactly what a PIF-backed startup carrier has to pay to pull experienced crews from established Gulf operators. Alongside airline hiring, the wider regional market keeps moving — the Truescho opportunities board tracks live vacancies and programs across the Gulf if you want to see what else is open while you prepare your aviation applications.

How to Apply: The Three Riyadh Air Recruitment Portals, Step by Step

No competitor guide explains the portal structure properly, so here it is plainly. Riyadh Air runs three separate official doors, and using the wrong one is the most common way strong candidates get lost:

1. careers-riyadhair.icims.com — the general iCIMS portal for cabin crew, engineering, corporate and ground operations roles. This is where the Technician II and Engineer I postings live.
2. pilots-riyadhair.icims.com — the dedicated flight crew portal. Every First Officer and Captain vacancy is filed here, separate from the general system.
3. talentcommunity.riyadhair.com — the talent community. If nothing matches your profile today, registering here puts you in the pool the airline mails first when new fleet arrivals create vacancies.

The application sequence, once you are in the right portal:

1. Create a profile on the relevant iCIMS portal — one profile per portal, with a consistent name, email and phone across all three.
2. Upload an ATS-friendly CV. The portals are applicant-tracking systems, so format for parsing: standard headings, no graphics, licence types and jet hours stated explicitly. Our ATS CV checker for Gulf jobs walks through the exact formatting rules these systems read reliably.
3. Self-screen against the minimums before applying — hours, licence, medical, age. Applications below published minimums are filtered automatically.
4. Complete the online assessment, including the ~6-minute recorded video interview — practise answering competency questions to camera before you record.
5. Attend an assessment day if invited. For cabin crew these run across the 14 cities listed above; expect a reach test, a group exercise, and photos and uniform measurements.
6. Final interview, typically one-on-one and competency-based.
7. Offer, then medical. Pilot medicals revalidate the Class 1; crew medicals follow airline standards.
8. Training — 8 weeks for cabin crew on full salary; type-rating course lengths for pilots depend on fleet assignment.

Plan for the whole cycle to take 6–12 weeks from application to offer, per CrewDaily's candidate reporting. Two safety notes: Riyadh Air never charges application fees, and it does not recruit via WhatsApp — third-party listings pushing a WhatsApp "fast track" or any upfront payment should be treated as scams and ignored in favour of the official portals above.

The Nawah Program: Riyadh Air's Saudi Cabin Crew Pathway

For Saudi nationals, Riyadh Air runs a dedicated entry route that no other Gulf carrier currently matches. Nawah, the airline's flagship cabin crew development program, is an 8-month training course in Riyadh delivered in partnership with Bunyan academy, with its first intake launching in August 2026. It is open to Saudi men and women and leads to an internationally recognised cabin crew qualification.

The official careers page described it in its clearest terms as guaranteed training that leads to employment — the airline's own commitment, and the strongest entry-level promise anywhere in Gulf aviation. Confirm pay terms and any flying-hour guarantee in the official program terms before you commit.

Watch the official Nawah program video

Source: Riyadh Air official YouTube channel

Source: Riyadh Air official YouTube channel

If you are a Saudi reader deciding between Nawah and direct entry, the practical difference is simple: direct entry expects the year of service experience, while Nawah trains you from a lower experience base over eight months. Applications for both run through the main careers portal.

The Expat Track: Saudi Work Visas, Relocation and Settling In

Foreign pilots, crew and engineers do not apply for their own work visas — the employer sponsors the process once an offer is signed. The practical sequence for you is: signed contract, employer-initiated visa, then medical and document attestation in your home country. Our Saudi work visa requirements and attestation guide covers the document checklist country by country.

Relocation quality is where Gulf packages genuinely differ from Western ones. Housing is provided or heavily subsidised — the documented FO package above carries SAR 19,500 a month in housing support alone — and typical Gulf relocation packages fold in transport allowances, annual home-leave tickets and end-of-service gratuities. One honest gap: published Riyadh Air listings do not detail family status allowances, schooling or family travel benefits, so confirm those items in writing at offer stage rather than assuming them.

One practical note for your first weeks on the ground: a travel eSIM such as Airalo gives you working data from the moment you land, before your local SIM, Iqama and bank account are sorted — a small thing that makes the first week of any Gulf relocation considerably smoother.

Riyadh Air vs Saudia vs Emirates: How the Packages Compare

How does the new carrier stack up against the incumbents you are probably also applying to? The table below uses only the figures cited earlier in this article, at their original currencies.

Read the table with two caveats. First, Riyadh Air's top-end Captain figures overlap with Emirates' — but Dubai and Riyadh differ sharply on cost of living and lifestyle, so net savings can favour either depending on your situation. Second, Qatar Airways deliberately has no row here because no comparable verified 2026 figures surfaced in our research; if Doha is on your shortlist, our Qatar Airways vs Etihad vs Emirates comparison and the Qatar jobs for foreigners guide cover that market in detail.

When Gulf Aviation Is Not the Right Move for You

An honest careers guide owes you the counter-case. This path is not for you if:

• You are below the flight-hour minimums. With no airline-sponsored ab initio pipeline at Riyadh Air for expats, the SAR 125,000-plus self-funded licence route is your only path in — slow and expensive, and better started elsewhere.
• You need published contract terms before applying. Bond lengths, end-of-service formulas and family benefits are negotiated at offer stage at most Gulf carriers, including this one. If that opacity is a dealbreaker, regulated-home-market employers publish more upfront.
• You cannot meet the hard cabin crew minimums. Age 21, 160 cm, 212 cm reach and fluent English are screened at assessment day with a tape measure in the room — no flexibility, no exceptions.
• You are a Saudi candidate weighing Nawah against immediate income. Nawah's 8-month program delays crew income during training; direct entry with existing hospitality experience pays sooner.

If aviation itself is the wrong fit rather than the employer, the regional alternatives are broad — see the wider Arab job market overview for sectors currently hiring across the Gulf, or the Truescho board linked above. And to be plain: nothing in this article is a promise of employment. Vacancy counts, salary bands and even portal requirements change monthly; verify every figure against the live posting before you make decisions.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Riyadh Air hire foreign pilots?

Yes. Pilot recruitment is explicitly international — the airline's assessment events span 14 cities across Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia, and its pay discussion centres on expatriate packages. Salaries in Saudi Arabia are free of personal income tax. Foreign First Officers and Captains apply through the dedicated pilot portal at pilots-riyadhair.icims.com.

What are the requirements to join Riyadh Air as a First Officer?

Per listings reported by CrewDaily: 2,000 flight hours on multi-crew jet aircraft, a valid ATPL, a current Class 1 medical, and ICAO English level 5 or higher. Candidates below the minimums can join the talent community and apply once their hours build. Captain roles require 6,000 hours with 2,000 in command.

Is a B787 type rating required to apply to Riyadh Air?

The published 787-9 First Officer minimums — 2,000 multi-crew jet hours, ATPL, Class 1 medical, English 5+ — do not list a current 787 type rating among them. Always check the live posting on the pilot portal before applying, as requirements vary by fleet, vacancy and hiring wave.

How much do Riyadh Air pilots earn per month?

CrewDaily's June 2026 figures: First Officer A321neo SAR 60,000 (~USD 16,000); First Officer 787-9 SAR 65,000; Captain A321neo SAR 85,000–115,000; Captain 787-9 SAR 90,000–120,000. A documented FO 787-9 package totals roughly USD 24,600 a month including housing, transport and flight pay.

What is the Riyadh Air cabin crew salary in 2026?

Around SAR 10,000–13,000 per month all-in (about USD 2,700–3,500), tax-free, per learnwithkateryna.ae and CabinCrewHQ — structured as roughly SAR 5,500 basic plus flying pay, with company housing provided. Crew also have 75 flying hours a month guaranteed through end-2026 and full salary during training.

Is Riyadh Air salary tax-free for expats?

Yes, in Saudi terms — the kingdom levies no personal income tax on employment salaries, and CrewDaily's February 2026 market analysis quotes Saudi pilot pay of SAR 18,000–120,000 monthly as tax-free. Note that your home country may still tax you depending on citizenship and residence, so check your own tax position first.

How long does the Riyadh Air recruitment process take?

Expect roughly 6–12 weeks from application to offer, per CrewDaily's candidate reporting. Cabin crew hiring runs in assessment-day waves across 14 cities, so your timeline depends on when an event reaches a city near you. Pilot hiring follows rolling, vacancy-driven cycles on the dedicated pilot portal.

Before you close this tab, run this checklist: confirm you meet the published minimums for your role before applying; pick the correct portal — pilots, general careers, or talent community; format your CV for the applicant-tracking system; note which of the 14 assessment cities is reachable for you; and screenshot the salary components in this article so you can negotiate the full package, not just the base. Gulf aviation hiring waves are short and competitive — open the relevant iCIMS portal today and get your profile in before the next intake closes.

Sources

• Riyadh Air Careers — official portal — the airline's official careers site, including cabin crew and corporate openings and the Nawah program page.
• Riyadh Air iCIMS job portal — the live general application system for crew, engineering and corporate roles.
• Riyadh Air Talent Community — registration pool for future-vacancy alerts across all role families.
• Wikipedia — Riyadh Air — fleet, order book, first-flight date, leadership and economic-impact figures, September–October 2026 revisions.
• Wikipedia — King Salman International Airport — six-runway master plan, 100 million passengers by 2030, 185 million by 2050.
• Saudia Group Careers — the incumbent group's official careers hub, alongside Saudia Technic and flyadeal portals for engineering and operations roles.