Kuwait Airways said in a statement that it had canceled every flight linking Kuwait City with Riyadh on Saturday following the closure of King Khalid International Airport. The decision covers both departures from Kuwait and arrivals from the Saudi capital with no alternative timings offered for that day. Saudi officials ordered the temporary shutdown amid reports of a blast at the airport according to multiple regional outlets that tracked the developing situation on October 9 and 10. Aviation tracking services noted that similar closures had already triggered widespread cancellations across several carriers serving the Saudi capital.
Cirium data placed the number of canceled departures at Riyadh airport at 169 out of 378 scheduled on October 8 equivalent to 44.7 percent of the day’s planned flights. The same analytics firm recorded 124 arrival cancellations out of 369 on the same date. Saudia experienced the heaviest impact with 97 of its 140 departures from Riyadh scrubbed that day the figures show. Kuwait Airways operates multiple weekly rotations on the route with eight flights per week under normal conditions according to schedule information from directflights.com.
The latest disruption forms part of a pattern of airspace and airport interruptions across Saudi Arabia linked to heightened regional tensions. Houthi attacks on Saudi infrastructure have prompted several international carriers to suspend or delay services to Riyadh with Philippine Airlines halting operations until at least October 11 Gulf News reported. Singapore Airlines postponed the start of its Riyadh route until March 2028 citing the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. Egyptian carrier EgyptAir and India’s IndiGo also canceled flights in the immediate aftermath of the incidents.
Kuwait’s national carrier had only recently restored fuller operations following an earlier 55-day closure of Kuwait International Airport earlier this year. Acting CEO Abdulwahab Al-Shatti told state news agency KUNA in April 2026 that the airline would run three weekly flights to Riyadh as part of its initial recovery network. The current Saudi airport closure now forces a fresh interruption to that reinstated schedule. Jazeera Airways which also serves the route has not yet issued a corresponding update on its own operations.
Regional aviation authorities continue to monitor the situation with no immediate reopening time announced for King Khalid International Airport. Travelers holding tickets for the canceled Kuwait Airways services are advised to contact the airline for rebooking options or refunds. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation in Kuwait has not issued additional guidance on the matter as of October 10. Industry observers note that repeated disruptions could affect passenger confidence on the busy Kuwait-Saudi Arabia corridor which supports significant business and family travel.
