Houthis Ground 86% of Riyadh Airport Flights — SkimNews
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- Cirium reported that 4,071 of 4,736 scheduled flights, or 86%, at King Khalid International Airport were canceled between Oct. 8 and Oct. 25.
- Houthis escalated attacks on Saudi Arabia during October, targeting airports, ports and oil facilities with ballistic missiles and drones; an Oct. 10 strike on Riyadh airport killed 13 people, the kingdom’s deadliest in more than a decade.
- King Khalid International Airport partially reopened Sunday after a shutdown that began Oct. 10, with domestic flights resuming from Terminal 1 and national carriers permitted to run international services from Terminal 2.
- Houthis said on Monday that they had attacked King Khalid International Airport again and called it a “military target,” with the attacks prompting international airlines to suspend services to Riyadh into November.
- Delta Air Lines postponed the launch of its Riyadh route until next year.
- Saudi Arabia saw 7,800 departures canceled—45% of all scheduled flights—from Oct. 8 through Oct. 25; nationwide cancellations exceeded 60% on Oct. 12, while Dammam and Abha had cancellation rates of 42% and 46.7% and all Najran flights were canceled.
- Riyadh’s marquee investment conference was canceled or postponed as flight cancellations hampered travel to and across Saudi Arabia.
Why it matters: For Saudi Arabia, the attacks are no longer confined to the capital: 45% of departures from Saudi airports were canceled between Oct. 8 and 25, with every Najran flight canceled. Delta Air Lines faces a Riyadh launch delayed to next year, while the country’s marquee investment conference was canceled or postponed.
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