How Did The New Airlines Of 2023 Fare In 2024?

Airlines have seen a rebound in passenger traffic in recent years, and IATA reported that last year, global traffic numbers were nearly back to pre-pandemic levels. As existing airlines have been adding capacity as fast as they can, plenty of new airlines have also sprung up to meet the increased demand. As Simple Flying reported last year, 2023 was a record year for startups, with 20 new airlines established worldwide.

Photo: Riyadh Air

However, operating an airline is notoriously risky, and success is not guaranteed even in a surging market. So, as we look back on the past year, let’s revisit some of those new airlines established in 2023 and see how they fared in 2024.

Riyadh Air: First flights coming in 2025

Undoubtedly, the most widely covered airline startup in 2023 was Riyadh Air
. It was launched as a new national carrier for Saudi Arabia, owned by the kingdom’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) and led by industry veteran Tony Douglas, former chief executive at Etihad Airways
. Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 initiative seeks to diversify the economy away from oil by fostering growth in tourism, hospitality, and aviation. Riyadh Air is integral to this plan and achieving the kingdom’s goal of attracting 100 million visitors annually by 2030.

Photo: Falcons Spotters | Shutterstock

Riyadh Air has yet to take to the skies, with its first flights planned for spring 2025. But what it lacked in destinations in 2024, it made up for with headlines, mostly about its incoming fleet. This started in March when it announced the purchase of 39 Boeing 787-9s (with options for an additional 33), which Douglas explained would be the backbone of the new airline:

“The new airline reflects the ambitious vision of Saudi Arabia to be at the core of shaping the future of global air travel and be a true disrupter in terms of customer experience. By positioning the airline as a global connector and a vehicle to drive tourist and business travel to Saudi Arabia, our new 787-9 airplanes will serve as a foundation for our worldwide operations.”

Photo: Riyadh Air

Then, in October, the carrier revealed its narrowbody plans with a deal for 60 Airbus A321neo family aircraft. The delivery timeframe and exact makeup of the order are not yet clear, but it will likely include some LR and XLR variants. Riyadh Air also ended the year on a high note with the news that it has received 100% of its requested slots at King Khalid International Airport, positioning it for its first flights in 2025.

Mexicana: Rebirth of the Mexican carrier

Mexicana de Aviación was Mexico’s oldest airline and flag carrier before it ceased operations in 2010. Since then, there have been numerous rumors about a comeback, but only recently did the Mexican government (which purchased the brand) make concrete plans to re-launch Mexicana. The creation of a new airline with the legacy name was announced early last year, to be run by the Mexican Secretariat of National Defense. Tickets went on sale in September, and the first flight was made the day after Christmas.

Photo: Secretaría de Gobernación

However, the relaunch was a rushed and troubled affair. The date for the first flight had to be pushed back several times, and there were numerous challenges around acquiring its initial aircraft. The new airline initially planned to lease ten Boeing 737-800s, but the deal fell through. Instead, the carrier utilizes three B787-800s provided by the Mexican Air Force and four Embraer ERJ-145s leased from TAR Aerolíneas.

Photo: Mexicana

The new airline has made it through 2024, though, despite initial reports of extremely low load factors on its flights. Based at Felipe Ángeles International Airport, the secondary airport of Mexico City that is favored by low-cost carriers, it now flies to 9 domestic destinations, with plans to increase that to 20 over the course of 2025. It also placed a firm order with Embraer for 20 aircraft, including ten E190-E2 and ten E195-E2 jets, with the new-generation aircraft set to join Mexicana’s fleet from the second quarter of 2025. With the goal of achieving a 12% market share in Mexico, 2025 will be a crucial year for Mexicana to prove itself in the face of intense competition from the likes of Aeromexico, Viva, and Volaris.

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BeOnd: The Maldives’ boutique airline

The Maldives is famously home to scores of luxury beachside resorts and is a popular destination for well-heeled travelers. The only way to get there is by air, and international airlines dominate operations at Velana International Airport in the capital of Malé because the Maldives’ flag carrier, Maldivian, has too small a fleet to compete. BeOnd was established as a Maldivian all-business-class airline that would compete with the best international airlines and connect the Maldives with more worldwide destinations.

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The boutique airline launched in late 2023 using a single ex-easyJet A319 that is set up for 44 passengers in premium, lie-flat business class seats in a 2-2 configuration. Initial flights were from Munich and Zurich to Malé via Riyadh for a fuel stop. By February of this year, the airline had received its second aircraft, an ex-British Airways A321 that allowed for 68 lie-flat business class seats, and the carrier added Milan and Dubai to its route network.

Photo: BeOnd

However, the fledgling airline has had to make a few adjustments along the way. It has converted its Munch route into a seasonal service and scrapped its initial plans to launch a route to Bangkok. The owners of the airline, UAE-based Arabesque and Maldivian hospitality company SIMDI, are also conducting another round of funding to support the acquisition of new aircraft (ideally A321LRs). The airline plan calls for 32 aircraft within 5 years, and in the short term, BeOnd expects to add five new routes in 2025, with Delhi, Hong Kong, Paris, Singapore, Taipei, and Vienna all being floated as possibilities.

Photo: BeOnd

Red Way: A descent into chaos

In March 2023, Red Way was announced as a new low-cost airline serving seven domestic destinations from Lincoln, Nebraska: Atlanta, Austin, Dallas, Las Vegas, Minneapolis, Nashville, and Orlando. Based at Lincoln Airport, the airline commenced operations in June of last year, operating as a virtual airline by selling seats on aircraft owned and operated by Global Crossing Airlines, as Red Way lacked its own air operator’s certificate. Crucially, establishing the new airline was enabled by a $3 million fund from the American Rescue Plan Act provided via the City of Lincoln, significantly reducing startup costs.

Photo: Kevin Porter I Shutterstock

Red Way initially flew twice-weekly flights to each destination, with a planned increase in service on some routes from September 2023 due to reportedly high flight demand. However, by August, the airline announced that it would cease operations, citing costs and a lack of resources, with the last flight occurring by the end of the month. In total, the airline operated for less than three months.

Photo: GlobalX

The ignominious demise of Red Way has left a lot of chaos in its wake. Nebraska’s attorney general had to step in to ensure that the hundreds of passengers left stranded without a refund on their tickets were issued those refunds. The Nebraska State Auditor’s Office also conducted a forensic audit of the airline’s funding and slammed the deal that Lincoln officials made with Red Way as a “riverboat gamble” that squandered $3.7 million in federal and local funds. Lincoln Airport now has just United Airlines providing connections to Chicago and Denver, with local residents having to travel 55 miles to Omaha for more expansive service.

KM Malta Airlines: An island rebirth

KM Malta Airlines is not so much a new airline as a forced rebirth of an old one. Air Malta, its predecessor, had struggled financially for years and was particularly hard hit by the pandemic. The Maltese government planned to provide financial assistance in 2021, but European Union regulations preclude companies from receiving state aid more than once within a 10-year period, and the loss-making company had last received a state aid injection in 2012.

Photo: Lufthansa Technik

So, the government chose to dissolve Air Malta and move its assets to a succeeding carrier. KM Malta Airlines was subsequently launched in 2023 as a clean-sheet airline, free of the debt and costs that had burdened its predecessor for so long. It started operations with 17 destinations, primarily large cities in Western Europe, where it has been forging partnerships with legacy carriers such as Lufthansa, Air France-KLM, and Turkish Airlines to pick up connecting traffic.

Photo: KM Malta Airlines

The airline currently operates a fleet of Airbus A320neos with an average age of just 3.2 years, which currently have a 180-seat all-economy configuration. However, the airline plans to add a business class to its aircraft in the coming months, with as many as 36 business class seats, likely to compete more effectively with easyJet, which currently carries more than half of all air traffic to Malta. The airline has also speculated about direct flights to the US using A321XLRs, but that is likely a more distant plan as it first needs to deliver profitability across its European operations.

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Some other new airlines from 2023

Last year produced several other new airlines that are worth checking in on:

• Silk Avia: A regional airline based in Uzbekistan with its hub at Tashkent, Silk Avia began operations last year as a partner to Uzbekistan Airways. It flies to eight regional destinations using ATR 72-600s and Let L-410 Turbolets.
• Centrum Air: The new low-cost airline based in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, now has a fleet of six A320s/A321s. It currently flies to 12 destinations, with new routes to Frankfurt, Almaty, and Bangkok to be added in the first half of 2025.
• Air Samarkand: One more from Uzbekistan? Why not. This new carrier was founded in late 2023 and is based in Uzbekistan’s second-largest city. It began services earlier this year with an A330 to Istanbul.
• BermudAir: Bermuda’s new flag carrier is based at LF Wade International Airport in St. George. It uses a fleet of two ex-Flybe Embraer ERJ-175s to provide service to 10 destinations across the east coast of the US and Canada.
• Fly91: The regional Indian carrier flies to seven domestic destinations from its base at Manohar International Airport in Goa. It currently has two ATR 72-600s in its fleet and has orders for four more.
• airHaifa: The new low-cost Israeli airline finally began service from its base in Haifa in September this year and currently operates a fleet of three ATR 72-600s to Eilat and Lanarca in Cyprus, with a new route to Athens set to begin in January.