Riyadh airport cancels 86% of flights in two weeks

Aviation data released on Monday shows that missile and drone strikes by Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis have emptied the skies over Saudi Arabia's capital. Between October 8 and October 25, 4,071 of the 4,736 scheduled flights at King Khalid International Airport were canceled, a rate of 86 percent according to the analytics firm Cirium.

The Houthis have targeted airports, ports, and oil facilities in the region for several weeks. King Khalid, the second-busiest airport in the kingdom after Jeddah, has been struck repeatedly. The most severe incident occurred on October 10, when an attack killed 13 people, marking the deadliest aviation disaster in the country in over ten years.

Saudi authorities partially reopened the airport on Sunday after halting operations since the October 10 strike. Domestic flights resumed from Terminal 1, while national carriers were authorized to operate international services from Terminal 2.

The resumption of service was brief. On Monday, Houthi officials announced a new attack on the airport, which they described as a military target. In response to the continued disruptions, several international airlines have suspended services to Riyadh through November. Delta Air Lines has also delayed the launch of its Riyadh route until next year.

The disruptions have affected travel across the entire country. Cirium data indicates that 45 percent of all scheduled departures from Saudi airports were canceled during the same two-week period, totaling more than 7,800 flights. The cancellation rate peaked on October 12, when over 60 percent of nationwide scheduled flights were scrapped.

Other major hubs have also seen substantial service reductions. Dammam recorded a 42 percent cancellation rate, while Abha, where the Houthis have claimed strikes, saw 46.7 percent of flights canceled. At Najran, a regional airport near the Yemeni border, every scheduled flight was canceled. The travel disruptions have led to the cancellation or postponement of several major events in Riyadh, including the country's primary investment conference.

The data reflects a sharp decline in air traffic capacity across the kingdom. While some smaller regional airports lost nearly all services, the impact on major hubs has disrupted both domestic and international schedules for travelers and businesses alike.