Houthi attacks cancel 86% of flights at Riyadh airport

Missile and drone attacks by Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis forced the cancellation of 86% of scheduled flights at Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport between October 8 and October 25. The Jerusalem Post reported the figures, which come from aviation analytics firm Cirium. Of 4,736 flights scheduled at the Saudi capital's airport in that period, 4,071 were canceled.

The disruption reached far beyond the capital. Cirium's figures show that more than 7,800 flights were canceled nationwide over the same period, or 45% of all scheduled departures from Saudi airports. The worst day was October 12, when more than 60% of flights across the country did not operate.

The data also shows a 42% cancellation rate at Dammam and 46.7% at Abha, two airports the Houthis say they have struck. Most flights were canceled at several smaller regional airports. At Najran, near the Yemeni border, not a single flight operated.

The Post also reported that the Houthis have stepped up their attacks on Saudi Arabia this month, using ballistic missiles and drones against airports, ports and oil facilities. Riyadh's airport has been hit several times. An attack on October 10 killed 13 people.

Saudi authorities partially reopened the airport on Sunday, after a shutdown that began on October 10. Domestic flights restarted from Terminal 1, and national carriers were allowed to fly international routes from Terminal 2.

On Monday, the Houthis said they had attacked the airport again. They called it a "military target."

International airlines have suspended their Riyadh flights into November. Delta Air Lines has delayed the launch of its Riyadh route until next year. Several events in the capital have been canceled or postponed, including Saudi Arabia's flagship investment conference.

Last Thursday, Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said the group had struck Saudi Arabia's Defense Ministry in Riyadh, Saudi Aramco facilities in Yanbu, and airports in Dammam and Abha, as detailed in our earlier report.