| Founder(s) | Turki bin Muqrin |
|---|---|
| President | Turki bin Muqrin |
| Chief Instructor Pilot | Pete Dascoulias |
| Address | 9058 Sanan Ibn Zuhair Street, Al Basateen Dist., Jeddah 23718 - 5242, KSA |
| Location | |
| Website | http://rwaa.com.sa |
Rabigh Wings Aviation Academy (RWAA) is the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's first aviation academy.
Aside from being the first aviation academy in the Kingdom, the academy is a modern flight training school. [1] [2]
The CEO and founder, Turki bin Muqrin bin Abdul-Aziz, is a pilot, businessman, and a member of the House of Saud. [3] Adib Shishakly, a founder of the Syrian National Council, is the Vice CEO. [4] Shishakly, not a pilot, told the Saudi Gazette that he "did all the business side of it from buying the aircraft and delivering them to Rabigh. I also helped structure the maintenance department, the fuel farm, and the marketing and business strategy for the school. We have 15 aircraft: some single engine Cessnas, and single and twin Piper aircraft, as well as two twin engine Seneca Vs." [5]
The academy's first social event was held in 2011 with the Saudi "Street Eagles," a Harley-Davidson club. [6] In 2011, Arab News reported that Rabigh Wings Aviation Academy "is preparing to admit women for training." [7] On May 27, 2012, the Royal Jordanian Air Academy (RJAA) signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Rabigh Wings Aviation Academy (RWAA) "to develop cooperation between the two academies and share experiences in the fields of aviation and aircraft maintenance." The MoU was signed by Turki bin Muqrin bin Abdul-Aziz, and Director General of RJAA Captain Mohammed Khawaldeh. [8]
Riyadh is the capital of Saudi Arabia and the largest city on the Arabian Peninsula. Located in the center of the an-Nafud desert, on the eastern part of the Najd plateau, the city sits at an average of 600 meters (2,000 ft) above sea level, and receives around 5 million tourists each year, making it the forty-ninth most visited city in the world and the 6th in the Middle East. Riyadh had a population of 7.6 million people in 2019, making it the most-populous city in Saudi Arabia, 3rd most populous in the Middle East, and 38th most populous in Asia.
The House of Saud is the ruling royal family of Saudi Arabia. It is composed of the descendants of Muhammad bin Saud, founder of the Emirate of Diriyah, known as the First Saudi state (1744–1818), and his brothers, though the ruling faction of the family is primarily led by the descendants of Abdulaziz bin Abdul Rahman, the modern founder of Saudi Arabia. The most influential position of the royal family is the King of Saudi Arabia, an absolute monarch. The family in total is estimated to comprise some 15,000 members; however, the majority of power, influence and wealth is possessed by a group of about 2,000 of them. Some estimates of the royal family's wealth measure their net worth at $1.4 trillion. This figure includes the market capitalization of Saudi Aramco, the state oil and gas company, and its vast assets in fossil fuel reserves.
The Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF) is the aviation branch of the Saudi Arabian Armed Forces.
Abdel Aziz Issa Abdul-Mohsin Al-Muqrin, alias Abu Hajr and Abu Hazim, (1971–2004), was the leader of the militant Jihadist group al-Qaeda in Saudi Arabia. He succeeded Khaled Ali Hajj, when the latter was killed by Saudi security forces in March 2004. Al-Muqrin had trained with Osama bin Laden's Al-Qaeda in Afghanistan.
Abd al-Aziz, frequently also transliterated Abdul-Aziz, is a male Arabic Muslim given name and, in modern usage, surname. It is built from the words ʽAbd, the Arabic definite article and ʽAzīz "Almighty". The name is commonly abbreviated as "ʽAzīz". The name means "servant of the Almighty", al-ʽAzīz being one of the names of God in Islam, which give rise to the Muslim theophoric names.
Saud Al Kabeer bin Abdulaziz Al Saud was a grandson of Saud bin Faisal bin Turki and a cousin and important supporter of King Abdulaziz, founder of Saudi Arabia. Prince Saud was one of the most known Najdi people. Through his marriages he was the brother-in-law, and later he became the son-in-law, of King Abdulaziz. Saud was married for 45 years to King Abdulaziz's eldest sister Noura bint Abdul Rahman, and after her death in 1950 he married the King's daughter Princess Hessa.
Muqrin bin Abdulaziz Al Saud is a Saudi Arabian politician, businessman, and former military aviator who was briefly the crown prince of Saudi Arabia from January to April 2015, during the first three months of his half-brother King Salman's reign. He is the 35th son of King Abdulaziz, born to Abdulaziz's Yemeni concubine Baraka. Since the death of Abdulaziz's 36th son Hamoud in 1994, Muqrin has been the youngest surviving son of the king.
Abdul Rahman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud was a senior member of the House of Saud and Saudi Arabian deputy minister of defense and aviation. At the time of his death, he was the oldest living member of the Sudairi Seven.
Abdul Majeed bin Abdulaziz Al Saud was a Saudi Arabian politician and businessman who served successively as the governor of the Tabuk, Medina, and Mecca provinces between 1980 and 2007. A prominent member of the House of Saud, Abdul Majeed was seen as a close ally of King Abdullah, but was also regarded as a long-time ally of the Sudairi Seven.
Turki bin Talal Al Saud is a Saudi prince, politician, and military officer who has served as the governor of Asir since 2018.
The Allegiance Council, also known as the Allegiance Commission or Allegiance Institution, is the body responsible for determining future succession to the throne of Saudi Arabia. It was formed on 7 December 2007 by King Abdullah. At the time of its formation, the Council's intended function was to appoint a Crown Prince once a new King succeeds to the throne.
Mentor International is an international youth development NGO working in the field of substance use disorder prevention. It was founded in 1994 by Queen Silvia of Sweden in collaboration with the World Health Organisation. Current trustees include Yvonne Thunell, current Chairman, Stefan Persson, Chairman of H&M and Bertil Hult, CEO and founder of EF Education First. Honorary board members include Queen Noor of Jordan, Henri, Grand Duke of Luxembourg and Talal bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud and Turki bin Talal bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud of the Saudi Royal Family.
Abdulaziz bin Majid Al Saud is the former governor of Madinah Province and a member of House of Saud.
Turki bin Muqrin al Saud is a pilot, businessman, the CEO of Rabigh Wings Aviation Academy (RWAA), and a member of the House of Saud. He also is the president of the Saudi Air Sports Federation.
The Saudi Aviation Club (SAC) is official aviation club of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Muhammad bin Saud Al Muqrin, also known as Ibn Saud, was the emir of Diriyah and is considered the founder of the First Saudi State and the Saud dynasty, which are named for his father, Saud bin Muhammad Al Muqrin. His reign lasted between 1727 and 1765.
Fahd bin Muqrin Al Saud is a Saudi businessperson, and member of the House of Saud.
Abdulaziz (1875–1953), the founder and first king of Saudi Arabia, was very young when he first married. However his wife died shortly after their marriage. Abdulaziz remarried at eighteen and his firstborn child was Turki. He had 45 sons of whom 36 survived to adulthood and had children of their own. He also had many daughters. He is thought to have had 22 wives.
The 2017–19 Saudi Arabian purge was the mass arrest of a number of prominent Saudi Arabian princes, government ministers, and business people in Saudi Arabia on 4 November 2017 and the following few weeks after the creation of an anti-corruption committee led by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Turki bin Saleh Al-Maliki is a member of the Department of Plans and Operations at the command of the Royal Saudi Air Force, and the spokesperson for the Arab Coalition Forces to Support Legitimacy in Yemen since 2017, succeeding Major General Ahmad Asiri, who was the head of the mission since the start of the military operations led by the Saudi Armed Forces, Operation Decisive Storm, and then Operation Restoring Hope in Yemen.
