flydubai CEO outlines key factors behind the airline’s latest aircraft orders 

flydubai has captured the spotlight at the 2025 edition of the Dubai Airshow.  

On November 18, 2025, the Emirati carrier surprised industry players by placing an unprecedented order for 150 Airbus A321neo aircraft plus 100 options, its first-ever commitment to the European manufacturer. This was followed a day later by an additional order, this time with US aircraft manufacturer Boeing for 75 B737 MAX aircraft. 

As part of our coverage of the Dubai Airshow 2025, AeroTime attended a Q&A session with flydubai’s CEO, Ghaith Al Ghaith on November 19, 2025, in which the airline executive outlined the key considerations behind the latest raft of orders and shared his vision for the future of the airline.   

Al Ghaith clearly stated that the choice of the A321neo had been guided by two main considerations: the ability of the A321neo family to offer up to 15 additional seats and two hours of extra flight time compared to its most direct competitor. 

The airline executive went as far as to say that the A321neo had not faced any real competition, since it is the only aircraft type available for the type of network expansion flydubai has in mind. 

The airline’s CEO also outlined that, while the delivery calendar for the A321neo order, 2031-2043, is several years into the future, the airline needs to stay ahead of the curve and make sure that it contributes to the consolidation of Dubai as one of the world’s major economic and tourism hubs. 

This time frame, Al Ghaith highlighted, will also be perfectly aligned with the airline’s future move to Dubai’s Al Maktoum International Airport (DWC), which is planned to take place in 2032.  

In fact, flydubai expects to start operating in a limited way at DWC well ahead of that date. This is in order to prepare for the moment when all of Dubai’s passenger traffic is transferred from Dubai International (DXB) to a fully developed DWC. 

This move, which will allow flydubai and Emirates to operate under the same roof, will boost the collaboration already in place between the two Dubai-based airlines.  

Although formally separate, flydubai and Emirates share the same owner and already coordinate in a number of fields. Both flydubai and Emirates currently operate out of Dubai International (DXB), but they do so from two different terminals which are physically separated and quite distant from each other. 

No more widebodies for the time being 

While much of the conversation centered around the recently announced orders, Al Ghaith also commented on other aspects of flydubai’s operations and plans for the future. 

In response to journalists’ questions he confirmed that the airline is currently not looking at further widebody orders (flydubai ordered 30 Boeing 787-9 aircraft at Dubai Airshow 2023). On the first day of this year’s edition of the air show, on November 17, 2025, the airline confirmed an order for 60 GEnx-1B engines to power its future Dreamliner fleet. 

When it comes to the newly ordered narrowbodies, neither the exact version breakdown for both the B737 MAX and the A321neo, nor the engine choice, in the case of the future A321neo fleet, appear to have been decided yet. 

However, Al Ghaith did confirm that the Dreamliner fleet will be fitted with three-class cabins (business, premium economy, and economy class). 

He also used the opportunity to highlight that flexibility and adaptability have always been ingrained in flydubai’s way of doing things. He mentioned that at the time flydubai was launched in 2009, the low-cost carrier concept was not well-known in the region. However, since then, flydubai’s value proposition has evolved in response to the evolution of market dynamics and technology changes. 

Starlink connectivity and inflight meals 

Al Ghaith explained how the airline’s recent announcement that it will be offering complimentary meals and implementing Starlink inflight internet connectivity are the latest examples of this adaptability. Over the years, he explained, flydubai has been running what he referred to as “experiments”, some of which have stuck are still in place, such as the introduction of a business class product or the offering of inflight entertainment. 

Al Ghaith compared the advent of free, high-speed internet onboard to the ubiquity of Wi-Fi at hotels. While years ago, many hotels charged extra for Wi-Fi, nowadays broadband access has come to be regarded as an essential service that travelers take for granted. 

The airline executive admitted that the cost base of the airline has increased over time but, nevertheless, this has also resulted in a revenue increase. In this regard, he remarked that flydubai has posted record profits every year since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic,  

He also confirmed that technical evaluation works in preparation for the rollout of Starlink will begin within a couple of months. 

“Our biggest competition is ourselves,” he stated. 

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