Saudia Pilot Requirements 2026: Hours, License and Hiring Process

Saudia, the national airline of Saudi Arabia, posts its vacancies on its own careers portal, and at the last check, on 20 October 2026, the portal listed one pilot vacancy: the Saudia Cadet Program, posted on 17 October 2026. It is open to Saudi nationals only, and despite its name it is not for beginners: you need a valid GACA multi-engine Commercial Pilot License, at least 240 flying hours, 25 of them on multi-engine aircraft, the GACA AIP test passed with 80% or more, ICAO English at Level 4 or above and a GACA First Class medical. Searches of the portal for captain and first officer vacancies found none, so no route for licensed pilots from abroad was open on Saudia’s own site; job boards have relayed rated Captain and First Officer postings that we could not date. Saudia flies the Airbus A320 family and A330 and the Boeing 777-300ER and 787, took its first A321XLR in May 2026 and, in June 2026, expected its fleet to reach 161 aircraft by the end of the year.

Is Saudia hiring pilots now?

Cadet only at the last check on 20 October 2026 — First Officer seat: Cadet route only; Captain seat: Unconfirmed. Saudia Cadet Program for Saudi nationals with a GACA multi-engine CPL and 240 h, posted 17 October 2026; no First Officer or Captain vacancy on Saudia’s portal

Requirements, as published

Reading the Cadet Program requirements line by line

• A license already held. The program is for holders of a commercial pilot license: a valid GACA multi-engine Commercial Pilot License, with at least 240 flying hours, 25 of them on multi-engine aircraft. If you trained abroad, you must therefore hold a GACA license before you apply.
• Two tests and a medical. The GACA AIP test passed with at least 80%, a valid ICAO English Language Proficiency Test at Level 4 or above, and a valid GACA First Class medical certificate.
• Nationality and height. Saudi nationals only, with a valid Saudi National ID and a passport, and a height between 165 and 193 cm.
• Education. A science high-school certificate with 80% or above; for a diploma or bachelor’s degree in science, engineering or a related field, a cumulative GPA of at least 2.75 out of 4, or 3.75 out of 5. Certificates obtained outside the Kingdom need the Ministry of Education’s attestation.
• No second try after a termination. An applicant who has ever been terminated from a training program of Saudia or of any company of the Saudia Group is not eligible.
• Every attachment, or nothing. The posting lists ten required attachments, from the CV and the National ID to the license, the two test results and the medical, and says that missing any of them eliminates the application.

The posting gives no age limit and no closing date, and of the training it says only that candidates accepted into the program will be trained to the highest standards.

Entry routes

• Saudia Cadet Program — Saudi nationals with a GACA multi-engine CPL and 240 h; applications open at the last check (posted 17 October 2026)
• Direct entry First Officer — not open on Saudia’s portal at the last check (20 October 2026)
• Direct entry Captain — not open on Saudia’s portal at the last check (20 October 2026)

Saudia beside the other Saudi and Gulf airlines

Saudia beside the three other Saudi airlines on our jobs board and Emirates, as recorded at each airline’s last check:

Read the right-to-work column first: at the last check, Saudia’s only pilot vacancy was for Saudi nationals, while Riyadh Air and Emirates were recruiting pilots from abroad, with visas sponsored, as their entries record.

Selection process

1. Online application on Saudia’s careers portal with every required attachment: CV, Saudi National ID, passport, high-school certificate, highest degree and transcript, the GACA license, AIP test, English test and medical; an application missing any of them is eliminated

Flying in Saudi Arabia on a foreign license

If Saudia, or another Saudi operator, posts a vacancy for pilots from abroad, the license is the first hurdle. GACA, the General Authority of Civil Aviation, can issue a temporary flight authorization (TFA) to the holder of a pilot license from another ICAO member state, for pilot duties on aircraft of Saudi registry, under GACAR § 61.57. Its application form, in the version of 29 December 2022, asks for:

• a current foreign license with the category, class, type and instrument ratings for the aircraft to be flown, and English Language Proficiency at Level 4 or above;
• a valid foreign medical, Class 1 for a CPL or an ATPL;
• evidence that you have passed the KSA AIP knowledge test;
• a verification letter for the foreign license from GACA’s personnel licensing, and evidence of a Saudi security clearance;
• and a cover letter and a certification from the operator: that you are employed by or affiliated with it, the aircraft type and the duties you will fly, and that its instruction or indoctrination course has qualified you for them.

The form is not for a pilot who holds or has ever held a GACA certificate, and GACAR § 61.57 refuses a TFA to anyone who has failed a practical test under Part 61. A TFA is valid for 30 days from issue unless suspended or revoked sooner, ends earlier if the operator ends your employment, and you may apply for a 30-day extension while you still meet the rule. It is a temporary authorization; for a GACA license of your own, § 61.55 of GACAR Part 61 (version 7.0, read in an archived copy) lets the holder of a commercial license from another ICAO state obtain a GACA Commercial Pilot License with a type rating by passing the type rating practical test and all the prescribed knowledge tests, while foreign ATPLs fall under the part’s Subpart G, which we did not read. A GACA AIP test also appears in the Cadet Program’s requirements, for Saudi applicants, with a minimum score of 80%.

Bases and fleet

Bases: Jeddah · Riyadh

Fleet: Airbus A320 family, including the A321neo and the A321XLR; Airbus A330; Boeing 777-300ER; Boeing 787-9 and 787-10 · First Airbus A321XLR delivered in May 2026 (Saudia release, 27 May 2026) · 12 new aircraft due for delivery during 2026 (TradeArabia, 1 June 2026), and the fleet expected to reach 161 aircraft by the end of the year (Saudia Group’s Director General, in the same report)

How to prepare

For the Cadet Program, the papers decide the application: Saudia eliminates any application missing one of its attachments, so gather them before you apply: your CV, Saudi National ID and passport; your high-school certificate, highest degree and transcript, with the Ministry of Education’s attestation for a certificate or degree obtained outside the Kingdom; your GACA multi-engine license; the AIP test result, at 80% or more; the English test, at Level 4 or above; and your GACA First Class medical. Count your 240 hours, and the 25 on multi-engine aircraft, from your logbook. Saudia does not publish what follows the application, so prepare as for any airline cadet selection, with timed aptitude and reasoning practice, examples of teamwork and decisions from your training for an interview, and the theory revised with the ATPL theory banks. Saudia’s narrow-body fleet is the A320 family, which the A320 bank below covers, and its wide-bodies include the 787, covered by the B787 bank; there is no A330 or 777 bank on v1prep. An experienced pilot from abroad should, until Saudia posts a vacancy, keep a valid ICAO license, type rating and medical, and know what GACA asks of a foreign license, set out above.

For the selection, read the complete airline pilot interview guide and the Library’s pilot aptitude tests and airline pilot recruitment and selection. The Library’s commercial and airline transport pilot licenses sets out what separates the CPL the Cadet Program asks for from the ATPL a line pilot goes on to, and B787 family and flight deck is a place to start on Saudia’s Dreamliners. Riyadh Air, the new Saudi airline, was recruiting pilots from abroad at its last check: compare Riyadh Air pilot requirements and our Riyadh Air interview guide, and, across the Gulf, Emirates pilot requirements. Check Saudia’s entry on the jobs board for the latest status.

What we could not confirm

• Read on 20 October 2026 on Saudia’s careers portal (its searches, RSS feed and the Cadet Program posting); saudia.com itself could not be read. Confirm the vacancy is still open before you apply.
• Whether Saudia recruits expatriate First Officers or Captains at all in 2026: job boards have relayed Saudia postings for rated A330 and B777 Captains, asking about 6,000 hours, and for First Officers, but we could not date them or find them on Saudia’s portal
• Visa sponsorship, contracts and pay for expatriate pilots: we found none of them on Saudia’s careers portal, and saudia.com itself could not be read
• The selection stages after the Cadet Program application, and the training, fleet and base that follow: the posting does not give them
• An age limit for the Cadet Program: the posting gives none; a job-board copy of a 2017 intake gave 19 to 40
• Saudia’s fleet count today and its split by type: Saudia gives only the year-end figure it expects, 161 aircraft, and trade-press counts for 2026 differ
• How the suspension of operations at Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport after the attacks of October 2026, reported by the press and recorded on our Riyadh Air entry, affects Saudia’s Riyadh base, its flying and its pilot recruitment: we did not check this on Saudia’s own pages

These points are not published clearly by the airline. Treat them as leads, not facts, and confirm them on the careers page: careers page.

Common questions

Is Saudia hiring pilots? Only through its Cadet Program at the last check, on 20 October 2026: Saudia’s careers portal listed the Saudia Cadet Program, posted on 17 October 2026, as its one pilot vacancy, and searches of the portal for captain and first officer vacancies found none. Watch the portal for experienced-pilot postings.

Can foreign pilots apply to Saudia? Not to the vacancy open at the last check, on 20 October 2026: the Saudia Cadet Program is for Saudi nationals only, and the portal showed no Captain or First Officer vacancy. Job boards have relayed earlier Saudia postings for rated Captains and First Officers, but we could not date them or find them on Saudia’s site, and we found no visa or contract terms on Saudia’s portal.

What do you need for the Saudia Cadet Program? Saudi nationality, a valid GACA multi-engine Commercial Pilot License, at least 240 flying hours with 25 on multi-engine aircraft, the GACA AIP test passed with at least 80%, ICAO English at Level 4 or above, a valid GACA First Class medical, a height of 165 to 193 cm, a science high-school certificate with 80% or above and, for a degree, a GPA of at least 2.75 out of 4. Applicants ever terminated from a Saudia Group training program are not eligible.

Is the Saudia Cadet Program for students with no flying experience? No. Despite its name, the posting of 17 October 2026 asks for a commercial pilot license already held, issued by GACA, with at least 240 flying hours, so you train for the license before you apply. Saudia says accepted candidates are then trained to the highest standards, but does not publish that training.

How do pilots with a foreign license fly in Saudi Arabia? GACA can issue a temporary flight authorization to the holder of a license from another ICAO state who has never held a GACA certificate, for pilot duties on Saudi-registered aircraft. Its form asks for a current license with the ratings for the aircraft and English Language Proficiency at Level 4 or above, a Class 1 medical, a pass in the KSA AIP knowledge test, a verification letter from GACA, a Saudi security clearance and the operator’s cover letter and certification; the authorization is valid for 30 days unless suspended or revoked sooner, and you may apply for a 30-day extension. For a GACA license of your own, GACAR Part 61 lets a foreign commercial license holder obtain a GACA Commercial Pilot License with a type rating by passing the type rating practical test and the prescribed knowledge tests.