The new greenfield cities and resorts currently under development in Saudi Arabia as part of the country’s 2030 Vision strategy has also made an appearance at the Dubai Air Show. 

Collins Aerospace, which is part of aerospace giant RTX, has announced a deal to equip NEOM Bay Airport with its suite of operational and passenger processing systems and the related services. 

Although Collins Aerospace is not the primary contractor on the NEOM Bay airport project – that distinction belongs to India-based infrastructure and technology management firm ICAD – the American giant will be providing a range of airport management technology solutions. 

In fact, Collins Aerospace sees this high-visibility project as an opportunity to showcase the products it has developed for what it calls ‘the connected airport’, which includes passenger and baggage processing as well as its software for internal airport operations management. 

NEOM Bay Airport, on the Red Sea coast of northwest Saudi Arabia, welcomed its first scheduled commercial flights in 2022, although it is still largely a work in progress.  

Completion is planned for 2026, when it is expected to become a fully-fledged international hub supporting the growth of the nearby urban and tourism development projects. It will also be the home of NEOM Airlines, a new airline created to drive further visitor traffic to the region.