Akasa Air Extends Saudi Flight Suspension to Oct. 27 as Air India and IndiGo Stay Grounded Through Oct. 24

Since a Houthi strike on Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport killed at least 13 people on Oct. 10, airlines have kept lengthening their Saudi shutdowns. On Sunday, Oct. 18, Akasa Air pushed its date out again.

The Indian carrier said it has suspended all flights to and from Riyadh and Jeddah through Oct. 27. "In view of the prevailing security situation in the Middle East, Akasa Air has extended the suspension of all flights to and from Riyadh and Jeddah upto and including October 27, 2026," the airline said in a post on X.

Passengers can take a full refund, paid to the original form of payment within seven days, or rebook at no extra cost. Those who bought through travel partners were told to contact them directly.

Indian carriers stay out

Air India and Air India Express had already extended their suspension of Jeddah, Riyadh and Dammam service to Oct. 24. Passengers with confirmed bookings issued on or before Oct. 15 for travel between Oct. 9 and Oct. 25 get a one-time free date change up to Nov. 10, or a full refund.

IndiGo has cancelled all flights to Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam and Madinah through Oct. 24. It is notifying affected passengers using the contact details given at booking.

India's government has separately asked its nationals in Saudi Arabia to follow safety directives. Indians were among the casualties. The Indian Embassy in Riyadh said one wounded Indian national later died, and three others were in intensive care. India's Foreign Ministry called the repeated attacks on the airport "completely unacceptable" and said they "must cease immediately."

What the closures cost

Saudi aviation is heavily concentrated at the airports under fire. According to OAG Schedules Analyser data cited by Aviation Week, airlines had planned more than 7,700 departures from 28 Saudi airports in the week beginning Oct. 12, with almost 1.55 million seats. Riyadh would have carried 31.4% of Saudi departure seats, Jeddah 37.8% and Dammam 9.9%. That is a combined 79.1%.

South Asia and the region fill much of that capacity. Egypt was the largest overseas market that week at 154,408 departing seats, ahead of the UAE at 120,665, Pakistan at 85,592 and India at 79,075.

On the morning of Oct. 12, FlightAware showed 116 flights cancelled at Jeddah and 58 at Dammam. Riyadh had 665 departures and arrivals scheduled. Saudi Arabia's General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) kept the Riyadh airport shut "to complete the necessary procedures to verify the safety and operational readiness of the airport's facilities," and a NOTAM ran through at least Oct. 17.

The attacks behind the suspensions

The Oct. 10 strike hit Passenger Hall Number 4. Saudi authorities said it killed four Saudis, two Bangladeshis, an American, an Egyptian, a Jordanian, a Syrian, a Palestinian and a Sudanese, and wounded 309 people. It was the deadliest attack on the kingdom in more than a decade. A strike the next day killed a Pakistani resident and wounded 11. GACA has put the toll from Houthi attacks on Saudi airports since Oct. 6 at 20 dead and 356 injured.

Riyadh has opened an investigation into how the barrage of missiles and drones got past its air defenses. Coalition spokesman Col. Turki al-Maliki called the Oct. 10 strike a "full-fledged war crime" and promised the coalition would "respond decisively."

The Houthis say the strikes answer an intensified Saudi air campaign in Yemen. The group claimed Saudi forces carried out 119 attacks in 24 hours that killed at least 14 civilians. That figure is unverified. Houthi political bureau member Mohammed Al Bukhaiti told AFP the attacks were meant to warn the crown prince "that he can no longer wage aggression against Yemen from a safe position."

The group has also warned "all global airlines" to avoid Saudi airspace and told workers at Saudi oil facilities and airports to stay away because they are "legitimate targets."

Washington and the oil side

President Trump said on Oct. 12 that the Houthis are "misbehaving very badly" and called the Riyadh attack "not acceptable." He confirmed he had spoken with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Asked earlier about joining the Saudi-led operation, he said: "We may. We're gonna look at it." The Houthis answered that any U.S. involvement would bring a "swift and painful response targeting the US and all its interests in the region."

The latest market chatter has moved to energy. Newsquawk's desk reported a Yemeni missile reportedly hit Saudi Arabia's Yanbu port, along with speculation that it may have damaged infrastructure or the East-West pipeline. Iranian media said the pipeline had been targeted and cited a new thermal anomaly in the Yanbu area. Saudi officials have not confirmed damage to the pipeline. Crude rose on the speculation.

Brent closed at $106.65 on Monday, Oct. 12, its highest mark since Sept. 15, before the latest pipeline reports.

Iran, which Houthi critics call their backer, said it remains ready to use "all its capacities" to help end the conflicts if the parties request it.

Air India and IndiGo's Oct. 24 dates come first, and Akasa's Oct. 27 follows. Each airline has said it is reassessing in real time, and further extensions are possible if strikes continue.