Etihad Saudi flights between Abu Dhabi and Riyadh and Dammam remain cancelled through Thursday 19 November, while selected Abu Dhabi-Jeddah services are scheduled to resume from Friday 6 November, according to Etihad Airways’ travel updates page. The airline says the situation remains dynamic and passengers should check etihad.com before travel.
Key points
- Etihad: all passenger and cargo flights Abu Dhabi-Dammam cancelled through 19 November
- Etihad: all passenger and cargo flights Abu Dhabi-Riyadh cancelled through 19 November
- Etihad: EY601/602/603/604 Abu Dhabi-Jeddah scheduled to resume from 6 November; other Jeddah flights continue
- Khaleej Times reported flydubai resume dates from the airline’s website; flydubai has not issued an official statement on them
- Schedules can still change; check the airline before travel
What Etihad Saudi flights show on etihad.com
Etihad’s advisory, headed “Cancellation of Etihad Airways flights between Abu Dhabi and Dammam and Riyadh, and resumption of services to Jeddah”, states that all passenger and cargo flights between Abu Dhabi and Dammam, and between Abu Dhabi and Riyadh, are cancelled through Thursday 19 November.
For Jeddah, these flights are scheduled to resume from Friday 6 November:
| Flight | Route | Status on etihad.com |
|---|---|---|
| EY601 | Abu Dhabi to Jeddah | Scheduled to resume from 6 November |
| EY602 | Jeddah to Abu Dhabi | Scheduled to resume from 6 November |
| EY603 | Abu Dhabi to Jeddah | Scheduled to resume from 6 November |
| EY604 | Jeddah to Abu Dhabi | Scheduled to resume from 6 November |
| Other AUH-JED | Abu Dhabi-Jeddah | Continue as scheduled |
Etihad apologises for the disruption and says the safety of guests and crew remains its priority. Guests are encouraged to check the latest status at etihad.com. The resumption of EY601 to EY604 does not mean every Jeddah flight had been grounded; the airline says its other Abu Dhabi-Jeddah flights continued.
flydubai dates: not yet officially confirmed
Khaleej Times reported that flydubai had cancelled all flights to Abha, Dammam and Riyadh up to and including 5 November, and that its website showed Dubai-Jeddah bookings available from 6 November, Dubai-Dammam from 10 November, and Abha and Riyadh from 17 November. Those resume dates are taken from what appeared on the airline’s site according to Khaleej Times, and are not an official flydubai statement. Passengers should confirm on flydubai.com or Manage Booking before relying on any date.
For more on UAE airline flight disruptions, read our Dubai flights suspended roundup and our guide to the UAE aviation industry.
Why UAE-Saudi services were disrupted
Many UAE-Saudi services were disrupted after Iran-backed Houthi attacks on Saudi airports. Khaleej Times reported that a missile strike on Riyadh’s international airport on 10 October killed 14 people and injured more than 300; we could not independently verify that figure. The National reported that King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh had a partial reopen from 25 October and that some Saudia flights were still being rerouted, while Emirates plans to resume passenger flights to Riyadh and Dammam from 8 November.
For more on the regional backdrop, read our report on UAE and Iran relations.
Ticket holders should also update contact details in Manage Booking so the airline can send SMS or email if times change again. The same 19 November cut-off applies to cargo on the Riyadh and Dammam lanes, according to the same Etihad advisory.
For anyone booked Abu Dhabi-Riyadh, Abu Dhabi-Dammam or Abu Dhabi-Jeddah in the next two weeks, the best step is to check Etihad’s flight-status page again shortly before travel. Official Etihad dates through 19 November are clear so far; treat flydubai dates as provisional until the airline confirms them.
Sources: Etihad Airways, Khaleej Times, The National
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