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Flydubai flight FZ1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv diverted to Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, on September 30 after a cockpit altercation between the two pilots triggered a rapid, uncommanded descent; all 174 people on board landed safely.
Qatar Airways will restart Doha flights to Qassim, Taif, Yanbu and Tabuk between October 25 and January 3, pushing its Saudi schedule above 155 weekly flights, more than 10 percent over summer.
Riyadh Air will lift its month-old Manila service from four weekly flights to a daily Boeing 787-9 rotation starting October 19, putting Saudi Arabia's newest carrier in direct competition with Philippine Airlines and Cebu Pacific for one of the world's largest overseas-worker travel markets.
Five weeks before Delta's first-ever nonstop between the US and Saudi Arabia is due to take off, a Houthi ballistic missile set an Aramco fuel depot ablaze near Riyadh's airport — while Delta was already discounting the route after selling just a handful of seats.
Saudi Arabia's civil aviation regulator has issued an Air Operator Certificate to an Air Arabia-led consortium for a new low-cost carrier based in Dammam, clearing the way for a fourth national airline to begin flying with plans for 81 destinations and 45 aircraft by 2030.
From late August 2026, Riyadh Air passengers can book Saudia-operated connections to Abha, Dammam, Jeddah, Madinah and more — a codeshare that reveals how Saudi Arabia is running two state airlines without letting them compete.