Nearly half of all flights scheduled to leave Riyadh on Thursday were cancelled or did not operate, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium, as airlines scrambled to respond to Houthi attacks on Saudi airports.
Of 378 departures scheduled from King Khalid International Airport (RUH), 169 – or 44.71 per cent – were cancelled or listed as “no fly”, Cirium data showed.
Stay up to date with the latest news. Follow KT on WhatsApp Channels.
Arrivals were also hit, with 124 of 369 scheduled flights, or 33.60 per cent, cancelled or not operating.
Taken together, 293 of the 747 flights scheduled to use the Saudi capital’s main airport on the day were disrupted, or about 39 per cent.
Saudia bears the brunt
The kingdom’s flag carrier recorded the heaviest disruption by volume. Saudia cancelled or did not operate 97 of its 140 scheduled departures (69.29 per cent) and 87 of 136 arrivals (63.97 per cent).
Saudi budget carriers also took a heavy toll. Flynas cancelled 30 of 91 departures (32.97 per cent) and flyadeal 20 of 54 (37.04 per cent). Riyadh Air cancelled two of its 15 departures (13.33 per cent).
Together, the three Saudi carriers – Saudia, flynas and flyadeal – account for 147 of the 169 cancelled departures, or about 87 per cent. They also make up 105 of the 124 disrupted arrivals, around 85 per cent.
Foreign carriers pull out
Several international airlines cancelled all of their Riyadh services in the Cirium data.
All four of Turkish Airlines’ scheduled departures and all four arrivals were cancelled.
Air India Express cancelled both departures, and SriLankan Airlines, Philippine Airlines, Yemenia and Turkey’s AJet each lost their single scheduled departure. On the arrivals side, Lufthansa and ITA Airways were among those that cancelled their only flight.
Regional carriers were partly affected. Qatar Airways cancelled three of eight departures and one of seven arrivals, while Gulf Air cancelled one of five in each direction. EgyptAir cancelled two of four departures and two of four arrivals, and Oman Air cancelled one of three departures.
The UAE carriers Etihad Airways and flydubai also announced flight delay and cancellation due to the Houth attacks.
Impact on the South Asian corridor
Air India and Air India Express have suspended Riyadh services until October 10, while IndiGo has curtailed its operations, Indian media reported.
According to the Cirium data, IndiGo cancelled one of its three arrivals but none of its three departures. Pakistan International Airlines’ two departures and two arrivals were not affected.
The cancellations follow Houthi attacks on King Khalid International Airport and Abha airport in southwestern Saudi Arabia. Saudi authorities said three people were killed and dozens injured. On Thursday, the Houthis claimed a fresh ballistic missile attack on Riyadh’s airport, a claim Saudi Arabia had not confirmed at the time of reporting, according to the Associated Press.
It is not the first time Saudi flights have been hit this year. In July, flydubai, Saudia and flynas cancelled flights to and from Abha after a Houthi missile and drone attack on the airport.
King Khalid International handled 37 million passengers in 2024, according to the airport.
Passengers booked to or from Riyadh should check flight status with their airline before heading to the airport.
Source: Khaleej Times