Indian airlines cancel flights to Saudi Arabian cities till Oct 17

· India

Indian airlines cancel flights to Saudi Arabian cities till Oct 17

Account subscription benefits alongside Premium Stories, Editorials, Opinions and more. Unlock these with Subscription

Representational image | Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto

IndiGo, Air India Express, Air India, and Akasa Air on Tuesday (October 13, 2026) announced cancelling flights connecting Saudi Arabian cities till October 17 in view of the evolving situation in the Gulf country.

IndiGo, in a post on X on Tuesday (October 13, 2026), said that due to the evolving situation in Saudi Arabia, flights to and from Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam and Madinah stand cancelled until October 17.

"In view of the evolving situation in the region, we have cancelled flights to and from Dammam, Jeddah and Riyadh until 17 October. Affected guests are being offered complimentary rescheduling or a full refund on cancellation. We continue to monitor the situation closely," Air India Express said in a statement.

While announcing cancellation of flights to and from Riyadh, Dammam and Jeddah till October 17, Air India also said it was closely monitoring and assessing the developments in the region to resume safe operations.

The airline, in a post on X, said it was offering a full refund on cancellation for the affected passengers.

Akasa Air said that in view of the escalating security situation in the West Asia and the associated risks to safe flight operations, it has extended the suspension of all flights to and from Riyadh and Jeddah until October 17.

"This decision follows a careful assessment of the evolving situation, with safety remaining the primary consideration. We continue to closely monitor developments and assess the situation in real time," it said in a post on X.

Last week, the airlines had temporarily suspended services to Riyadh in the wake of attacks at the city's airport reportedly by Houthi militants.

The hostilities between the Iran-backed Houthi group and Saudi Arabia have escalated. There have been attacks with armed drones and missiles.

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.

Source: The Hindu - National