Riyadh Airport NOTAM: Closed Until October 17 — 99.7% of Flights Cancelled on Sunday — Dammam King Fahd International Airport Also Attacked — flydubai Suspends All Riyadh to October 14 — Etihad Extends to October 13 — Air France + KLM Suspend to End of October — Saudi Consulate Runs Emergency Overland Buses — Trump Weighs US Action Against Houthis — Houthis Renew ALL-Airlines Warning — October 12, 2026 LIVE Status

Published: October 12, 2026 — Monday (⚠️ BREAKING — NOTAM confirmed 12 October 2026 at 11:01 UTC · Sources: Aerospace Global News  October 12, 2026)

Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport is, to all operational purposes, closed.

An official Notice to Air Mission (NOTAM) confirmed on Monday October 12, 2026 that King Khalid International Airport will be closed until at least October 17. Cirium preliminary data for Sunday October 11 shows only one scheduled flight operated from the entire airport — 99.7 percent of all departures cancelled. Monday October 12 shows 362 departures cancelled or not flown from 1,048 scheduled, equivalent to 34.5 percent. The airport that handled over 35 million passengers annually has effectively been emptied.

The crisis expanded overnight. eTurboNews confirmed a separate attack on King Fahd International Airport in Dammam — Saudi Arabia’s third-largest airport and the primary gateway to the oil-rich Eastern Province — on Sunday evening October 11. Two Saudi airports have now been struck in two days. A third — Abha in the south — has been under Houthi attack since October 6.

The Houthis renewed their warning to all airlines, airport workers, and passengers on Sunday, a day after the deadliest attack yet on Riyadh Airport, which killed 12 people including a US citizen and injured 309 others. The group said Saudi Arabia “bore responsibility for failed interceptions” and urged airlines to take the warning seriously.

President Donald Trump is weighing US military action against the Houthis in response. The geopolitical escalation has pushed this beyond an airline disruption story into a major international crisis that is directly affecting millions of travellers and workers connected to Saudi Arabia.

This is the October 12 complete live status board.

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Published: October 12, 2026 — ⚠️ LIVE STATUS — Updated to 11:01 UTC
NOTAM issued: October 12, 2026 — King Khalid International Airport (RUH) CLOSED until at least October 17
Sunday October 11 operations (Cirium): 1 flight operated from 362 scheduled departures — 99.7% cancelled
Monday October 12 (Cirium preliminary): 362 cancellations from 1,048 scheduled — 34.5% cancelled
New attack confirmed: Dammam King Fahd International Airport (DMM) — Sunday October 11 — confirmed by eTurboNews + Saudi sources
Houthis warning (Sunday October 12): All airlines, airport staff, and passengers warned against using Saudi airports — Houthis say Saudi Arabia “bore responsibility for failed interceptions”
Trump statement: US President Trump weighing US military action against Houthis in response to escalation
US Mission security alert: US government employees in Saudi Arabia require special authorisation to use airports in Riyadh, Jeddah AND Dammam — confirmed October 11

AIRPORTS STATUS — OCTOBER 12:

• Riyadh King Khalid (RUH): 🔴 CLOSED — NOTAM until October 17 minimum
• Dammam King Fahd (DMM): 🔴 ATTACKED October 11 — status uncertain
• Jeddah King Abdulaziz (JED): ⚠️ Disrupted — US Mission warning applies
• Abha (AHB): 🔴 Under repeated attack since October 6
• Yanbu (YNB): ⚠️ Disrupted — flydubai suspended

AIRLINE SUSPENSIONS — COMPLETE LIVE TABLE:

Government travel warnings active:

• 🇺🇸 US Mission Saudi Arabia: Special authorisation required to use RUH, JED, DMM
• 🇬🇧 FCDO: Advise against all travel within 10km of Yemen border · Remain vigilant
• 🇦🇺 DFAT: Exercise High Degree of Caution — Saudi Arabia
• 🇨🇦 Global Affairs Canada: Avoid all travel to Saudi Arabia border areas with Yemen

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Part 1 — The NOTAM: What a Closed Airport Means for International Travel

A NOTAM — Notice to Air Mission — is the aviation system’s official communication to pilots and airlines about conditions affecting flight operations. When a NOTAM states that an airport is closed, it is the most unambiguous possible signal: no commercial flight can legally operate there.

The NOTAM confirmed on October 12 states that King Khalid International Airport will be closed until at least October 17. This makes formal what the Cirium data had already shown operationally: on Sunday October 11, only one scheduled flight operated out of a facility that handles dozens of departures per hour on a normal day.

The October 17 closure date is significant in several respects. It runs beyond the current end dates of most airline suspensions — Lufthansa through October 16, most Indian carriers through October 14, flydubai through October 14. If the NOTAM is extended beyond October 17 — and given the pattern of escalating attacks, extension cannot be assumed to be impossible — those airline suspension dates will follow automatically.

The NOTAM also has important implications for aircraft currently in Saudi Arabia. Any aircraft that was inside Saudi Arabia before the current closure began may be unable to depart until the NOTAM is lifted. Aircraft that were supposed to position into Riyadh for maintenance, for crew positioning, or for the start of a new rotation cannot enter. This creates a growing pool of aircraft displacement across the region that will compound recovery timelines once the airport does reopen.

For passengers, the NOTAM closure means one thing clearly: no flight into or out of Riyadh is operating and none can legally operate until October 17 at the earliest. If you have a booking into or out of Riyadh during this period, the flight does not exist in operational terms — not delayed, not uncertain, but cancelled. Request your refund immediately.

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Part 2 — Dammam: The Crisis Spreads to Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province

The attack on King Fahd International Airport in Dammam on Sunday evening October 11 represents a significant territorial expansion of the Houthi targeting campaign against Saudi aviation infrastructure.

Where previous attacks concentrated on Riyadh (King Khalid International) and Abha (the airport closest to the Yemeni border), the Dammam attack brings the conflict to Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province — the heart of the kingdom’s oil and petrochemical industry, home to Saudi Aramco headquarters, and the gateway to the communities of workers and expatriates who form the backbone of Saudi Arabia’s energy economy.

Dammam’s King Fahd International Airport serves the cities of Dammam, Dhahran, and Khobar — collectively known as the Dammam Metropolitan Area — as well as the surrounding Eastern Province region. It handles a mix of domestic Saudi traffic, Gulf regional routes, and international services connecting the oil industry workforce to home countries across South Asia, Southeast Asia, the Philippines, and Europe.

SriLankan Airlines confirmed its Saudi suspension extends to October 18. Etihad Airways extended its Saudi suspensions — covering Abu Dhabi services to Riyadh, Dammam, and Jeddah — to October 13. The US Mission security alert, which previously covered Riyadh and Jeddah specifically, now explicitly includes Dammam.

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Part 3 — The Houthi Warning and Trump’s Response: The Escalation Picture

On Sunday October 12, the Houthi movement renewed its warning to airlines, airport workers, and passengers against using Saudi airports. Reuters reported the statement directly: the Houthis “urged airlines, airport staff and passengers to take the warning seriously, saying Saudi Arabia bore responsibility for failed interceptions.”

This is the most explicit public warning the Houthis have issued to the international aviation community since the Saudi airport campaign began on October 6. It is addressed not just to Saudi nationals but to international airlines, international airport workers, and international passengers — a deliberate expansion of the warning’s scope that is intended to drive further international carrier suspensions.

President Trump confirmed on Sunday that the United States was weighing military action against the Houthis in response to the airport attacks. Trump’s statement was direct without specifying timelines or methods. The geopolitical dimension — potential US military involvement in a Yemen-connected theatre while the Houthis are simultaneously targeting Saudi airports — has introduced a new layer of uncertainty into the regional aviation environment that goes beyond the immediate operational situation at individual airports.

The Saudi-led coalition military spokesman Major General Turki al-Malki confirmed that the coalition had destroyed two ballistic missiles launched toward Riyadh in the October 8 attack, as well as a missile fired toward Khamis Mushait in the southwest. The successful interceptions are evidence that Saudi air defences are functioning — but the October 10 attack, which killed 12 people and injured 309 despite those defences, demonstrates that the system is not infallible.

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Part 4 — Air France, KLM End of October: The European Carrier Picture

The most significant airline escalation confirmed over the weekend is the extension of Air France and KLM suspensions to the end of October — a substantially longer period than most other carriers have announced.

Air France and KLM are not simply suspending Riyadh. Gulf News and multiple aviation sources confirm that both carriers have extended their broader Middle East suspension to cover Saudi Arabia through the end of the month. This means both carriers are committing to approximately three weeks of suspended Saudi operations — a timeframe that reflects an internal assessment that the security situation is not expected to resolve quickly.

The implications for French and Dutch passengers with Saudi travel are significant: Air France and KLM will not be available as alternatives until at least November. Passengers on Air France or KLM codeshares or tickets that connect through Paris CDG or Amsterdam Schiphol to Saudi Arabian destinations need to rebook now — not in the hope that Air France or KLM will resume before their travel date.

British Airways’ position is also relevant. BA’s suspension of Dubai and Riyadh services — which predates this escalation — means the UK’s flag carrier is not available as an option for London–Riyadh travel. Virgin Atlantic does not operate to Saudi Arabia. The UK market therefore has essentially no major carrier options for direct Saudi Arabia travel at the current time.

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Part 5 — The Overland Buses: What Saudi Consulate Is Doing for Stranded Nationals

One of the most striking elements of this weekend’s escalation has been the Saudi consulate in Dubai’s decision to arrange overland bus transport for Saudi citizens stranded by flight cancellations and unable to return home.

Gulf News confirmed on October 12: “Saudi Arabia’s consulate in Dubai and the Northern Emirates has arranged buses to transport Saudi citizens overland after flight cancellations left some travellers unable to return home following attacks on airports in the Kingdom.”

The overland route from Dubai to Riyadh via the UAE–Saudi Arabia land border typically takes approximately 6–8 hours depending on border crossing conditions and departure point. The consulate’s decision to arrange buses reflects the complete absence of usable air connections between the UAE and Riyadh — with Emirates, Etihad, flydubai, and Air Arabia all either suspended or operating with severely reduced capacity.

The Emirati public has also responded: Gulf News reports that UAE citizens offered their homes and support to stranded Saudi travellers in the UAE over the weekend, reflecting the depth of social connections between the two countries.

For non-Saudi nationals stranded in the UAE who need to reach Riyadh urgently: the Saudi consulate buses are available for Saudi citizens only. Non-Saudi nationals should check with their own embassies in Riyadh and in the UAE for any specific assistance or guidance. The general overland option — crossing at the UAE-Saudi border — remains available to those with valid Saudi visas or residency permits and their own transport arrangements.

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Part 6 — The Cirium Numbers: Understanding 99.7% Cancelled

Cirium is the world’s primary aviation analytics provider, used by airlines, regulators, and airports globally for operational data. When Aerospace Global News reports Cirium data showing 99.7% of departures cancelled from King Khalid International Airport on Sunday October 11, this is not a media estimate — it is derived from the operational records of every scheduled airline service compared against actual departure data.

The specific numbers are: on Sunday October 11, only one scheduled flight is recorded as having operated from King Khalid International Airport out of approximately 362 scheduled departures. That is a 99.7% cancellation rate — within measurement error of complete shutdown.

For Monday October 12, Cirium’s preliminary data shows 362 departures cancelled or not flown from 1,048 scheduled — a 34.5% cancellation rate. This remains an extraordinarily high figure but represents a partial recovery from Sunday’s near-total shutdown, possibly reflecting some Saudi domestic carriers attempting limited operations under the continuing NOTAM.

The percentage breakdown by carrier type tells the full story: Saudi Arabia’s three domestic carriers — Saudia, flynas, and flyadeal — have collectively recorded massive disruption across the October 8–11 period, with Saudia recording its worst operational performance since the airline’s founding. Saudi domestic aviation — the network of flights between Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam, Abha, Medina, Tabuk, and Saudi Arabia’s other cities — has effectively collapsed during this period.

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Part 7 — Your Complete Rights Guide: Saudi Arabia Disruption October 2026

The classification — extraordinary circumstances:

The Houthi missile attacks on Saudi airports are a genuine security emergency — the textbook definition of extraordinary circumstances under EU261, UK261, and US DOT rules. Airlines suspending Saudi operations due to the attacks are exercising their duty-of-care obligations to crew and passengers under international aviation law. Cash compensation for delay or cancellation is NOT legally required under any of the major passenger rights frameworks when the cause is a military security event of this nature.

What you ARE owed — refund rights (apply regardless of cause):

Every cancelled flight entitles you to a full cash refund to your original payment method. This right is absolute and unconditional under DOT (US), EU261 (EU departures), UK261 (UK departures), and Australian Consumer Law. The airline cannot substitute a travel credit or voucher without your explicit agreement. If your Saudi-bound or Saudi-originating flight has been cancelled, you are entitled to your money back — today, without waiting for the situation to resolve.

Rebooking rights:

If you want to continue travelling to Saudi Arabia or return home from Saudi Arabia, airlines are required to rebook you at the earliest available opportunity at no additional cost. Given the complete absence of Riyadh capacity, “earliest available” may be after October 17 or later depending on when airlines resume services. Request specific rebooking and confirm what the earliest available date is.

Care rights for passengers currently in Saudi Arabia:

If you are a traveller currently inside Saudi Arabia who was supposed to fly out and cannot because of the airport closure, your airline owes you duty-of-care including accommodation if you are not at home, meals, and communication assistance. The fact that the closure was caused by extraordinary circumstances does not remove care obligations. Contact your airline’s ground handling agent in Riyadh or your airline’s emergency contact number.

Visa overstay relief:

Saudi Arabia introduced temporary relief for visitors unable to depart due to flight cancellations during the March–May 2026 crisis period. As of October 12, no equivalent formal announcement has been made for the current crisis. Monitor GACA’s official website at gaca.gov.sa and your embassy in Riyadh for any formal visa extension relief. If your visa is expiring and you cannot fly out, contact your country’s embassy in Riyadh immediately.

Travel insurance:

If you purchased comprehensive travel insurance before the Saudi airport attacks were publicly announced (before October 6, 2026), your policy may cover trip cancellation, trip interruption, and additional accommodation costs. Contact your insurer now. If you purchased insurance after October 6 when the attacks were publicly reported, the specific Saudi airport disruption is likely excluded as a pre-existing event.

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Live Saudi Arabia Flight Status — What To Monitor

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Key Contacts — Saudi Arabia Crisis October 12, 2026

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Related Articles:

• Riyadh Airport October 11, 2026 LIVE: Fresh October 10 Attacks Kill 12 — Kuwait Airways Cancels KU775/776 — Air India Express Extended to October 14 — Saudi Aviation on High Alert
• Delta CEO Ed Bastian “Safety Makes the Call” on Riyadh — October 23 Atlanta Launch in Serious Doubt — Staff Do Not Travel Warning
• Asia Aviation Crisis October 10, 2026: 671 Cancellations + 3,479 Delays — Riyadh Cascade Hits Istanbul, Dubai, Shanghai, Delhi, Jakarta — Australian Transit Alert
• Middle East Flight Crisis October 7, 2026: 1,692 Delays + 131 Cancellations — Singapore Airlines Dubai Cancelled to December 1 — Air France, Lufthansa Suspended
• US Flight Chaos October 12, 2026: 4,182 Delays + 225 Cancellations — Las Vegas 417 Delays — Boston Logan — Philadelphia — FAA Ground Delays — DOT Rights

Posted By : Vinay

As a lead contributor for Travel Tourister, Vinay is dedicated to serving our Tier 1 audience (US, UK, Canada, Australia). His mission is to deliver precise, fact-checked news and actionable, data-driven articles that empower readers to make informed decisions, minimize travel risks, and maximize their adventure without compromising safety or budget.