Saudi capital Riyadh's skyways virtually paralyzed due to Houthi attacks

(Cairo = Yonhap News) Correspondent Kim Sang-hoon = The airway in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, was virtually paralyzed as an attack on the airport by Yemen's pro-Iran rebels Houthi caused large casualties and the authorities extended the airport closure.

According to Reuters on the 12th (local time), Saudi Arabia's General Authority for Civil Aviation (GACA) announced that it would extend the suspension of operations at Riyadh King Khalid International Airport in the aftermath of the Houthi rebels' attack over the weekend.

The General Administration of Civil Aviation explained, “This is a measure to thoroughly inspect the safety and operational readiness of airport facilities.”

King Khalid Airport is the second busiest major airport in Saudi Arabia after Jeddah Airport.

The airport was completely closed on the 10th after a surprise attack by Houthi rebels killed 13 people and injured more than 300, causing the worst casualties in more than a decade.

In the subsequent attack on the 11th, one person was killed and about 10 were injured.

According to Sirium, an aviation information analysis company, 99.7% of flights scheduled for King Khalid Airport on the 11th were canceled.

Looking at the aircraft tracking site FlightTrader24, it was clearly confirmed that passenger planes were taking a detour to avoid the skies over Riyadh on the 12th. However, Jeddah Airport, located on the west coast, is operating normally.

This is the most serious operational disruption in the Saudi aviation industry in recent years.

This is another negative factor for the aviation industry, which is already suffering from the prolonged conflict in the Middle East and rising aviation fuel prices.

Major airlines around the world also stopped flights to Saudi Arabia.

Germany's Lufthansa Group canceled all flights to Riyadh until the 16th, and Air France-KLM also extended its suspension of Riyadh routes until the end of this month.

Etihad Airways of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) also canceled about 20 flights to Riyadh, Jeddah, and Dammam on the 12th and 13th.

Warnings from aviation authorities in each country are continuing.

On the 11th, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) urged domestic airlines to be especially careful when flying to or over Saudi Arabia.

On the 9th, the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) had already expanded its alert for Saudi airspace due to the risk of missile and unmanned aerial vehicle (drone) attacks.