SAUDI ARABIA: Houthis renew Bombings of Riyadh, Najran Airports; Mass Flight Disruptions Ensue

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia

• Yemen's Houthi Armed Forces have confirmed they targeted King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, Najran Airport, and the airbase in Khamis Mushait in Saudi Arabia today Thursday, 8 October.
• Houthi spokesman Brigadier General Yahya Saree stated in a press release that the militia targeted King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh this evening with two cruise missiles, Najran Airport with a ballistic missile, and the airbase in Khamis Mushait with a ballistic missile.
• He claimed the strikes were "precise and direct", and resulted in the disruption of air traffic at both airports and caused damage to them and the airbase.
• As a result, airlines are now canceling flights to Riyadh en-masse.
• Singapore Airlines postponed the launch of its services until March 28, 2027, citing the conflict in the Middle East. Philippine Airlines canceled flights to the capital until at least Oct. 11.
• Saudia, the country’s national carrier; Egyptair; Indigo; and Air India Ltd. canceled dozens of flights out of Riyadh on Thursday in the aftermath of the attacks.
• Operations at King Khalid International Airport have been shut down for several hours and restarted multiple times during the past few days as incoming attacks from Yemen make it unsafe for planes to land or take off from there. Abha airport in the southwest also came under fire.
• Last week, Cathay Pacific extended the cancellation of its flights to Dubai and Riyadh through 31 January 2027.
• Several American and European carriers still avoid flying to the Middle East since Iran started targeting countries in the Gulf earlier this year.
• Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport is seeing significant flight disruption on October 8, with 169 of 378 scheduled departures cancelled or not operating as of 1625L, according to aviation analytics company Cirium.
• Saudia is experiencing the largest disruption by volume, with 97 of 140 scheduled departures cancelled or not flying — about 69.3 per cent of its Riyadh departures.
• For inbound services, 87 of 136 scheduled Saudia flights, or 64 per cent, were cancelled or not operating.
• Flynas had 30 of 91 scheduled departures affected, or 33 per cent, while Flyadeal recorded 20 cancellations or no-fly services from 54 scheduled departures, equivalent to 37 per cent.
• Riyadh Air had two of 15 scheduled departures affected, or 13.3 per cent. International impact.
• Several international airlines are also reporting disruptions from Riyadh.
• All four scheduled Turkish Airlines departures from Riyadh were listed as cancelled or not operating, while Qatar Airways had three of eight departures affected. EgyptAir had two of four departures affected and Oman Air one of three.
• flydubai had one of three scheduled departures affected, while Emirates and Etihad Airways each had three scheduled departures with no cancellations or no-fly services listed in the Cirium data.
• Air India Express had both of its scheduled departures cancelled or not operating, while Air India has cancelled flights to and from Riyadh until October 10. SriLankan Airlines, Philippine Airlines, Yemenia and AJet each had their single scheduled departure affected.
• In terms of arrivals, the cancellation rate is lower than for departures.
• Saudia had 87 of 136 scheduled arrivals affected, while Flynas recorded 13 cancellations or no-fly services from 88 scheduled inbound flights. Flyadeal had five of 54 affected and Riyadh Air two of 15.
• Among international carriers, Turkish Airlines again had all four scheduled arrivals affected. EgyptAir had two of four, while Gulf Air had one of five and Flydubai one of three.

Sources:

• Saba
• Gulfnews