Saudi Arabian Airlines (Saudia) Wednesday took delivery of its first two Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners, with a third Dreamliner to be delivered within the next week, becoming the 13th operator of the variant in the world and the second in the Middle East following Etihad Airways.

The airline's 787-9 Dreamliner will feature a two-class configuration with 298 seats, two-class arrangement with space for 24 Business Class and 274 Economy passengers.

Initially the Boeing 787-9 will operate domestic flights, as well as Gulf service to/from Dubai, followed by service to Europe and China from March 2016, the flag carrier announced last September.

However, the planned 787-9 flight from Riyadh to Guangzhou was cancelled, according to Airline Route.

The airline ordered eight 787-9s in 2010 and now owns 48 Boeing aircraft in its fleet including 777-200ERs and 747-400s. Over the last 55 years, Saudia has taken delivery of over 130 Boeing airplanes including 707s, 737s, MD-11Fs, DC-9s and MD90s.

The Boeing 787 Dreamliner is an all-new, super-efficient family of commercial airplanes that brings big-jet ranges and speed to the middle of the market. Since entering service in 2011, the 787 family is flying more than 350 routes and has established more than 75 new nonstop routes around the world.

Check out how Saudia's 787-9 Dreamliner was built via the above time-lapse video.

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