Riyadh airport to remain shut this week as airlines cancel services

Authorities have extended the closure of Riyadh's international airport until Saturday and airlines scrapped flights after continuing attacks by Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis emptied the skies over Saudi Arabia's capital. Operations at King Khalid International Airport, Saudi Arabia's second-busiest airport after Jeddah, were suspended to "allow for the completion of procedures to ensure the safety and operational readiness of the airport's facilities", the Saudi civil aviation authority said in a statement. A Notice to Airmen issued on Monday showed King Khalid International Airport will stay closed until 2100 GMT on October 17. The airport has been shut since an attack on Saturday that killed 13 people and wounded more than 300, the deadliest in the kingdom in more than a decade. On Sunday, another attack killed one person and injured nearly a dozen others. The attacks marked one of the most significant disruptions to Saudi aviation in years, adding to pressures on an industry already grappling with conflict across the Middle East and with higher jet fuel prices that are eating into profits. They have also raised worries over civil aviation becoming a target in armed conflict. "This level of sustained intense attack on civil aviation is unprecedented," said Mark Zee, founder of OPSGROUP, a membership-based organization that provides aviation safety advice. "I think this requires us to rethink how we view the current risk picture, and tread very carefully," he said. General view of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, October 12, 2026. (Reuters) Air traffic tracker Flightradar24 showed planes avoiding the city on Monday, though jets were crossing Saudi airspace and landing at top hub Jeddah on the country's west coast. Cancellations across all Saudi airports reached 46.4%, aviation analytics firm Cirium said. Airlines suspend services The disruption has forced airlines across Europe and Asia to suspend services, while the Federal Aviation Administration advised US carriers on Sunday to exercise caution when flying to or over Saudi Arabia. EU aviation body EASA widened a Saudi airspace warning on Friday, citing missile and drone attacks. Lufthansa Group has cancelled all flights to Riyadh until October 16, while Air France-KLM has extended a suspension to and from Riyadh until the end of the month. Etihad Airways said it had cancelled flights between Abu Dhabi and Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam due to "regional disruption", adding that all flights between Abu Dhabi and Riyadh would be cancelled until October 19. Qatar Airways said on Monday it had temporarily suspended flights to and from Riyadh and Dammam due to the "current situation". Delta Air Lines said it was delaying planned services from Atlanta to Riyadh, initially due to start on October 23, until March 2027.