61 flights from Dhaka to Saudi cancelled, 8,381 passengers in uncertainty

At least 8,381 passengers have been stranded as flights to Saudi Arabia remain suspended amid the shutdown of the kingdom's airports. A total of 61 flights to various destinations in the country have been suspended. The Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) said 22 of these are direct flights and 39 are transit flights.

In a notice issued on Monday (October 12), CAAB said the passenger figure was calculated from data provided by the airlines concerned. However, it does not include passengers of Riyadh Air, which has not yet provided its passenger numbers. The total will be revised once that information arrives.

Among the suspended direct flights are nine of Biman Bangladesh Airlines, seven of Riyadh Air, four of Saudia and two of US-Bangla Airlines. Passengers on these flights face uncertainty over their travel.

Among the transit flights, 16 of IndiGo, nine of Emirates, five each of Qatar Airways and flydubai, three of SalamAir and one of EgyptAir have been suspended. Passengers travelling to other countries via Saudi Arabia have also been left in difficulty.

Earlier, CAAB had said 5,418 passengers were affected by the suspension of 51 flights. According to the latest count, the number of suspended flights has reached 61, and the number of affected passengers has also risen significantly.

The disruption follows a series of attacks targeting various airports in Saudi Arabia. Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport is among the targets. Flight suspensions and restrictions have been imposed because of the security situation.

In this situation, Biman Bangladesh Airlines has announced that Dhaka-Riyadh-Dhaka flights will remain suspended until October 17. US-Bangla Airlines, meanwhile, has said its Riyadh-bound flights will remain closed until October 21. The airlines said further decisions will depend on the situation.