Houthi Missile Strikes Force Mass Cancellations at Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport

The city of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, is in chaos after a series of attacks by Houthi rebels on King Khalid International Airport (RUH) disrupted flights on the weekend, with hundreds of flights canceled, and more sudden attacks are expected with the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

The second busiest airport in the kingdom is Riyadh Airport. The aviation analytics company Cirium lists 11,222 departures there for October 2026 (11,832 at Jeddah).

Two attacks in three days

The first strike came on Thursday, October 8, destroying a Saudia Airbus A320. The disruption on Friday was relatively small. FlightAware data revealed that 24% of departures (96 flights) were canceled and 52% (204 flights) were delayed on October 9th.

On Saturday, October 10, a second, much bigger attack occurred when a missile struck Terminal 3. Thirteen people lost their lives and over 300 people were injured. Sixty-five percent (234 flights) of the departures were canceled, and 16 percent (63) were delayed that day. 82% (293 flights) were canceled on Sunday, with only four delayed.

The General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) of Saudi Arabia has extended the prohibition on operating flights to Riyadh as it checks the safety and operational condition of its facilities in cooperation with the relevant authorities.

Monday's picture

A total of 241 scheduled departures (69%) were canceled, and three were delayed at the time of writing on Monday, October 12. The number of arrivals was more dismal, with 247 cancelations (72%) and four delays. Those numbers will likely rise.

The effect is not limited to Riyadh. 67 departures from Jeddah were canceled (18%) on Monday, while Dammam (DMM) saw 35 departures canceled (30%) and 10 departures delayed (8%). Attacks have also been directed towards Dammam. Now several Saudi airports are in the midst of some of the world's most troubled airports.

Saudia hit hardest

Saudi flag carrier Saudia, a member of the SkyTeam alliance, has suffered the most from the chaos. By planned departures in October, Riyadh is its biggest base with 4,163 flights, while Jeddah has 4,132 planned flights, but Jeddah has more seats (approx. 1.03 Million vs. 855,000).

This heavy presence makes Saudia the world's most disrupted airline in recent days. 261 of its flights (51%) were canceled and 37 (7%) were delayed on Monday. Flynas and Flyadeal are Saudi carriers and are just behind.

Foreign carriers withdraw

Airline companies around the world are making changes, too. Air India, Emirates, Etihad Airways, Flydubai, Kuwait Airways, Qatar Airways, and Sri Lankan Airlines have all reduced flights to Riyadh, the New Arab reports.

It is particularly tough for Delta, which is introducing its first Saudi route, from Atlanta to Riyadh, this month. The security environment certainly won't help, as bookings were already reported as weaker than expected.

How travelers should behave

Persons traveling from and to Riyadh using other Saudi airports as transit points or from and to other airports must ensure the status of their flights with their airline before arriving at the airport and have to be ready to get rebooked. Further cancelations are likely in the days ahead as GACA's suspension remains in place and the situation is rapidly evolving.

BookingTrolley will keep monitoring the situation at Riyadh and in the region.

Read Also: Delta Air Lines Cuts 7 Nonstop Routes From Its Minneapolis-St. Paul Hub