Ireland’s Alliance Aviation Group has developed a new VIP terminal at Dublin International Airport and formed Alliance Aviation Arabia, operating the first general aviation hangar in Saudi Arabia
Headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, the Alliance Aviation Group chose the Irish Business and General Aviation Association (IBGAA) annual conference on 17 November 2025 to announce that handover of its new general aviation terminal (GAT) at Dublin International Airport to the Dublin Airport Authority Group (daa) is scheduled for February 2026. A significant development for business and VIP visitors flying to and from the Irish capital, the GAT announcement comes towards the end of a year in which the Alliance Aviation Group also established a significant foothold in Saudi Arabia, under the newly formed Alliance Aviation Arabia.
Discussing the Dublin development, Alliance Aviation Group FBO Manager Liam Murphy explains: “As a hangar and FBO manager at Dublin Airport in 2024 we explored the opportunity to introduce a screening facility. That developed into a discussion with the daa about developing a general aviation terminal.” A new runway opened in 2022 had resulted in a 20-minute drive being required to reach the general aviation parking area, which had previously been located close to the Platinum Services VIP terminal and lounge. “This meant passengers enjoyed the beautiful lounge experience, then went through screening and had to climb into a ‘van’ for a much longer drive to the aircraft,” says Murphy.
Working with the daa, Alliance made rapid progress on the new terminal, installing the latest equipment and therefore making it ready for the C3 cabin baggage screening requirement that comes into force on 1 January 2026. Now, Alliance has Irish Aviation Authority terminal operator approval and an approved security programme in place for processing airport-based clients. “Those clients have been using the facility since May, but in Q1 next year we’ll hand over operation to the daa, relieving the hassles previously faced by all general aviation users at Dublin Airport,” Murphy reveals. “It means every general aviation passenger will arrive in the adjacent car park, pass through the latest screening equipment and go straight out to their aircraft. After 1 January 2026, the new screening regulations meant 60% of the baggage going through the Platinum Services terminal would have needed to be moved elsewhere for screening too, and we’ve also removed that potentially negative development for Dublin’s GA passengers.”
AlUla
While the Alliance Aviation Group was busy with the new Dublin terminal and running its FBOs and maintenance organisations at Shannon and Dublin airports, the Group’s latest company was hard at work at AlUla Airport in Saudi Arabia. Close to the UNESCO World Heritage site at Hegra and located in an area of extraordinary cultural and historical significance, the city of AlUla had previously lacked an FBO. The Alliance development is not only welcome for VIP visitors to the airport, but entirely in keeping with the Kingdom’s aviation ambitions under the Vision 2030 initiative.
Alliance and the daa worked closely together on the AlUla project, as Brendan McQuaid, Co-founder and Managing Director of Alliance Aviation, explains: “The daa has been working in Saudia Arabia for around 12 years and has a great reputation there. daa International had done important work at Jeddah Airport and as an Irish company going into Saudi Arabia, people associated us with the excellence of the daa.
“We were already in partnership with them in Dublin and working closely together, and there is a huge Irish community and significant Irish aviation expertise in Saudi Arabia. We want other Irish aviation companies to look at our relationship and come to work there, with us providing support.”
Murphy adds: “We’ve found the Saudis very receptive to foreign investment, to our Western-style FBO experience and the development work we’ve done at the airport. We’re calling it the AlUla Aviation Hub and while I agree with Brendan that we want to attract more Irish companies, we also want to help them avoid the challenges we’ve already overcome, cultural and otherwise.”
Asked, ‘Why Saudi Arabia?’, McQuaid responds: “People ask why there and not the UAE? We feel that the time for new development in the UAE was 20 years ago, while Saudi is in its infancy. Everything is new and companies are coming, but there isn’t sufficient infrastructure to support the big operators, like VistaJet and Flexjet, that are looking to base aircraft there.
“There is little line maintenance available for GA, for example, so we’re among the first providers and we have the first GA hangar too. Thinking about the global market, it’s an unusual opportunity. If you went into America you’d be the last, in Europe you’d be second last, in the UAE third last, but Saudi Arabia is a new beginning. We’re making tracks in a place where no one of our calibre has been before, with all the certifications and experience we have.”
Murphy points to the huge opportunity for growth in the country, prompting McQuaid to comment: “It’s a vast country of 35 million people, with no rail links between cities. The only way to get to Riyadh from AlUla is by flying, or a 12‑hour road journey, so there’s a huge market for corporate jets and even light jets. At the moment there are only large jets in the country, but they are always booked, but there are opportunities for light jets. We’re delighted to see companies like Flexjet coming in. We hope that operators familiar with our service in Dublin and Shannon will seek us out for ground handling and maintenance in Saudi Arabia.”
Continuing that train of thought, McQuaid confirms that negotiations are continuing for an Alliance presence at other airport locations. “We’re looking at sites on the west coast, where there are lots of airports and lots more under development. Alongside our line maintenance capability in AlUla, we’re setting up what we call a rapid response rig programme. The rig is a big truck equipped with tools that our engineers use to respond to maintenance issues at all seven airports on the west coast.
“An AOG at Al-Wajh, for example, is a three-hour drive in the rig, while Neom Bay Airport is four and a half hours from AlUla. It’s similar to how AOG support is delivered in America. The trucks are equipped with everything the engineers need and they have airside clearance for all those airports. The rig is essentially based on a large motor home, so it has its own power, catering, sleeping and toilet facilities, meaning the engineers can remain on site with no external support. And where recreational travellers might put a small car or motorcycles on the back, we put ground power units and other heavy equipment.”
Even though there is only one GA hangar at AlUla, it is indeed a hub for Alliance’s burgeoning Saudi operation. It is six-hours’ drive in the rig to Jeddah, and just one hour to Red Sea International Airport. Providing some perspective on the rapidity of the service, Murphy notes that depending on flight schedules, an AOG at Shannon requiring support out of London can wait as long as 36 hours for an engineer to reach the stranded aircraft, over a distance of around 500 miles, while the Alliance rig typically covers the similar distance between AlUla and Jeddah in six hours.
The AlUla development heralds the beginning of a new era for Alliance Aviation Group but should not be allowed to overshadow the significance of developments in Dublin. Adding to the existing Alliance FBO and hangar at Dublin International, the new terminal is adjacent to Alliance’s own ramp, accommodating only based and handled aircraft, and emphasising the improvement in passenger experience. In fact, says Murphy, the development will transform the mediocre VIP and business aviation passenger experience of recent years at Dublin into one that is extremely positive. “It’ll be more private, provide the discretion passengers are looking for, away from the general public, and make the journey from car park to aircraft extremely quick.”