Airlines suspend Riyadh flights after Houthi attacks
Lufthansa Group and three Indian airlines have suspended flights to Saudi Arabia’s capital, Riyadh, following renewed threats by Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis, who claimed an attack on the city’s international airport.
Lufthansa said Thursday that its airlines would suspend flights to Riyadh through October 16, citing “current developments in the Middle East.”
India’s largest airline, IndiGo, canceled all flights to and from Riyadh until October 9, while Air India and Akasa Air suspended their services until October 10.
Air India said a flight from Delhi to Riyadh returned to the Indian capital on Thursday. Akasa Air also canceled two scheduled services.
Smoke reported at Riyadh airport
Smoke was seen rising from a stationary aircraft at Riyadh airport on Thursday, according to a witness and three people briefed on the incident.
The Houthis claimed they had struck King Khalid International Airport with a ballistic missile. Saudi authorities had not immediately confirmed the reported attack.
Saudi officials said Wednesday that three people had been killed this week in strikes targeting Riyadh airport and Abha airport in the kingdom’s southwest.
Cancellations disrupt air traffic
The suspensions triggered widespread disruption to air travel, with several dozen international flights scheduled to arrive in Riyadh on Thursday evening canceled, according to flight-tracking data from FlightRadar24.
Aviation analytics firm Cirium reported that 49.7% of departures from Riyadh airport had been canceled by 1500 GMT on Thursday. The firm also projected 31 additional cancellations across Saudi airports on Friday.
The flight suspensions come amid heightened regional tensions and growing concerns over the security of civilian aviation as attacks and threats continue across the Middle East.
Source:DailySabah
