Saudi Arabia has emerged as the premier extraction engine for expats fleeing airspace closures in the UAE and Qatar. As commercial aviation grinds to a halt in neighboring hubs, the Kingdom is absorbing the overspill, helping move passengers out of the region and repatriating folks stranded abroad.

Saudi’s role in keeping flights moving has been “impressive,” Charles Robinson, founder of private aviation platform EnterJet, tells EnterpriseAM. “They have really been a backbone in many senses, alongside Oman, in terms of being able to facilitate the movement of passengers to and from the region," Robinson said.

The way out

Wealthy expatriates — specifically holders of UAE golden visas — are paying anywhere from USD 150k-200k for total evacuation packages. Clients are being advised to keep their passports on hand and carry up to AED 100k (USD 27k) in banknotes, Bloomberg reports.

Private jet booking volumes have jumped 40% since Saturday. This surge in demand has triggered a sharp spike in pricing, Robinson said. As things stand, a short extraction flight from Muscat to Riyadh on an 8-10-seat aircraft costs c. USD 30k, while long-haul charters to Western Europe are priced closer to USD 100k.

Leapfrogging into the Kingdom is becoming a deliberate cost-saving strategy for the C-suite. Because a direct drive from Dubai to Riyadh takes over 10 hours, residents are largely opting for the sub-five-hour drive to Muscat, Oman. The overland leg to Oman has triggered a price surge, with fast-track border transfers now costing USD 5k per vehicle. Once in Muscat, travelers are chartering private aircraft to connect in Riyadh or Jeddah, which drastically reduces the private flight time and makes it “far more appetizing” from a cost perspective, Robinson noted.

The geopolitical seesaw

Safety calculations are shifting day by day as the situation remains fluid. Saudi was considered the safer option on Sunday after Oman was hit by drones. By Monday, intercepted strikes at several sites within the Kingdom led to some road restrictions.

The attack on the US embassy dented confidence — but didn’t break it. While Robinson observed a “slight shift” and a decline in direct flight requests into Riyadh and Jeddah following the attack on the US embassy, he noted that many customers still perceive the Saudi capital as a “safe routing out.”

The context

Exit strategies are becoming increasingly important as foreigners gear up to leave in droves. The US State Department has urged its citizens to depart over a dozen countries, citing “serious safety risks,” and the country is scheduling charter flights to evacuate Americans in the Kingdom, while the UK Foreign Office is coordinating with Saudi authorities to facilitate overland extractions for 94k registered Britons via Riyadh.

The government-led response is being mirrored by commercial relief efforts. India’s Indigo and SpiceJet have scheduled 10 relief operations from Jeddah and Fujairah, and Germany has partnered with Lufthansa and Tui to move its nationals out of Dubai by land, according to the business information service. Preparations are underway to evacuate thousands more from Bahrain, Kuwait, and Qatar.

What’s next?

Expect a massive bottleneck of private jet traffic. As directives alter and airspace begins a staggered reopening, EnterJet is forecasting a “vast amount” of private charter traffic moving in and out of the region in the coming days.

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