It has been a difficult few weeks for Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport (RUH), as the airport has been repeatedly bombed by the Houthis, leaving at least 15 dead and over 300 injured, which is absolutely tragic. Beyond that, we saw an incredible amount of damage, including the destruction of a Saudia Airbus A320 and several other damaged aircraft.
Predictably, this impacted operations at the airport, which remained suspended for some time and only resumed in a limited capacity for cargo planes. With this in mind, airline start-up Riyadh Air is taking an interesting approach to resuming operations and temporarily setting up a hub elsewhere.
Riyadh Air moves its flights from Riyadh to Al Qassim
Riyadh Air has suspended operations in recent weeks as the airline withdrew its planes from Riyadh, following reports that at least one of the carrier’s newest Dreamliners had been damaged. The airline now plans to resume operations, but with one change.
As of October 25, 2026, Riyadh Air intends to resume flights from Al Qassim Airport (ELQ), located approximately 400 kilometers from Riyadh. Specifically, the airline will initially resume flights to Cairo (CAI), Dhaka (DAC), Islamabad (ISB), Jeddah (JED), London Heathrow (LHR) and Lahore (LHE).
The logic for moving the service is that Riyadh Airport only operates with prior authorization and passenger flights at the airport have not resumed. So, if Riyadh Air wants to resume flights, doing so from Al Qassim is the next best option, as inconvenient as it may be.
Of course, it’s worth mentioning that there is no reason why Al Qassim couldn’t be a Houthi target, even if recent airport attacks have been centered around Riyadh.
Flying Riyadh Air will include a 4.5 hour bus journey
How does Riyadh Air expect passengers to get from Riyadh to Al Qassim? The airline still allows its passengers to start their journey in Riyadh. The way it works is that passengers can check in at the InterContinental Hotel Durrat Al Riyadh and then take a free coach to Al Qassim Airport.
The logistics here are quite complicated:
- Hotel check-in will be open between 15 minutes and two hours after the bus departs.
- The bus journey will then take 4.5 hours, so it’s a very long journey
- The bus will then arrive at Al Qassim Airport 30 minutes before the baggage cut-off time for flights.
You’re talking about a very long day of travel here, potentially!
Conclusion
With the attacks at Riyadh airport earlier this month, operations at the airport were suspended for some time. Riyadh Air is now resuming operations, but from Al Qassim Airport rather than Riyadh Airport.
This is as good as it gets if Riyadh Air wants to resume operations, although of course a 4.5 hour bus ride to reach the departure airport isn’t really ideal. But what is the airline supposed to do? Man, Riyadh Air really had some very unlucky timing when it came to its launch and ramp-up.
What do you think of the layout of Riyadh Air Al Qassim Airport?
Gn world
