Is Riyadh airport open? Not yet. It was set to start taking flights again tonight, with tight limits, before an early warning alert in Riyadh put that on hold. Two new notices from Saudi aviation authorities, issued Saturday afternoon, say that every flight arriving at or leaving King Khalid International Airport now needs prior permission, and that the airport can't be used as a backup for planes diverting from elsewhere. The notice that kept the airport closed ran out at midnight Saudi time (5 p.m. Eastern) on Saturday, October 17.
Saudi authorities haven't made a formal reopening announcement, and no airline has said when its first Riyadh flight will go. But the new notices are written for an airport that's operating, not one that's shut.
Developing · Riyadh (RUH)
Riyadh's Reopening Is on Hold
Contrail
What "Prior Permission" Means
Normally, airlines file their flights and go. Under a prior-permission rule, each flight has to be approved by Saudi aviation authorities ahead of time. That gives the government a say over how many planes use Riyadh and when, which usually means a much thinner schedule while an airport recovers.
The second notice matters too. Pilots plan for a backup airport on every flight in case something goes wrong at their destination, and Riyadh is now off that list. It's another sign the airport is being eased back into use rather than flung fully open.
Who's Still Not Flying
Even once Riyadh does reopen, many airlines had already canceled Saudi flights well past this weekend:
- Air India and Air India Express: Riyadh, Dammam and Jeddah through October 20
- IndiGo: Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam and Madinah through October 24
- Akasa Air: Riyadh through October 24 and Jeddah through October 21
- Etihad: Riyadh and Dammam through October 18
- flydubai: no Riyadh flights, with no end date given
- Philippine Airlines: Riyadh suspended through November 29
- Delta: its planned Atlanta to Riyadh launch is pushed to March 2027
Saudi airlines like Saudia, flynas and Riyadh Air are likely to be first back, since they're based in the country. flynas, for one, spent the past week flying some of its Riyadh routes from Qassim, about 200 miles away.
Why It Was Closed
The airport was hit in attacks on October 8 and 10. The October 8 attack reportedly killed three people, including an airline captain, and set a parked Saudia Airbus A320 on fire. Six passenger jets were damaged in total, worth an estimated $375 million, according to an insurance assessment reviewed by The Wall Street Journal. That includes a Riyadh Air Boeing 787 hit by debris. Airlines moved dozens of planes out of Riyadh afterward, and they'll need time to bring them back.
Contrail said earlier this week that Saturday's deadline was a ceiling rather than a promise. The new notices opened the door partway, but tonight’s alert shows how quickly that can change.
What to Do if You're Booked
- Don't go to the airport on the strength of this news alone. Wait until your airline confirms your flight is operating.
- Expect delays and last-minute changes for the first few days, since every flight needs sign-off.
- If your flight is still canceled, ask whether your airline can move you to Jeddah or Dammam, and check that it's flying there. Jeddah has been under strain too, and on Saturday Jeddah's airport paused flights for more than an hour.
- If you're connecting through the Gulf, check the safest ways to route around the region before rebooking.
