Operations at Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport were moving back toward normal on Friday after Houthi-linked attacks and earlier disruption halted and delayed flights across the Saudi capital’s main hub. Traffic was broadly recovering, but carriers including Etihad and flydubai still had cancellations, while flight-tracking data showed lingering delays and cancellations through the morning.
The disruption began on Wednesday and continued into Thursday, when explosions were reported in Riyadh and flights were suspended for more than an hour before services resumed in stages. By Friday morning, flight tracking showed 63 delayed flights and 44 cancellations since midnight, compared with a far heavier level of disruption the previous day. Saudi aviation authorities said air traffic had returned to normal, even as passengers faced continued schedule changes.
The fallout spread well beyond Riyadh. Emirates, Air India, IndiGo, Akasa Air and Lufthansa Group were among the carriers that adjusted services after the attacks, with some suspending Riyadh flights for several days. Flydubai cancelled flights to Riyadh through 10 October and to Abha through 11 October, while Etihad cancelled a series of Abu Dhabi-Riyadh services on Friday and Saturday.
The airport disruption also affected regional connectivity and rebooking patterns across the Gulf, Europe and India. Several flights to and from India were cancelled, and airline networks across the Middle East continued to rework schedules as security concerns remained elevated around Saudi airspace.